


A Euphonious Melody

by glowing_chkcurry



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Anxiety, Bottom Cloud, Clack, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Slow Burn, band au, how do i write again, i promise things'll pick up, musician au, top Zack, zakkura
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 08:00:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 48,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25530076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/glowing_chkcurry/pseuds/glowing_chkcurry
Summary: Cloud is a singer/songwriter... well was. He had given that up a long time ago. However, when Tifa drags him into seeing this band, he feels something in him light up again. All because of Zack; his voice, his band, their music. Cloud couldn't help but become curious. However, he must deal with the conflicting emotions within himself.
Relationships: Zack Fair/Cloud Strife
Comments: 88
Kudos: 144





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Here I am drowning in musician AU's I guess?????

“The usual?” the bartender asked.

Cloud nodded his head and the bartender proceeded to make his drink. Cloud sighed, noticing that the bar is busier than it typically is. It is a music bar, so crowds are expected on days where the bar hosts various bands. However, there were certainly more people than usual. Tifa had mentioned something about a band that’s supposed to play tonight, and they’re _supposedly_ really good.

The bartender handed Cloud his drink, “Aye man, why you look like you don’t wanna be here? Lighten up a bit, yeah?”

But the thing is, Cloud really didn’t feel like being there tonight. He had a long day at work and just wanted to spend his night at home relaxing and overlooking the city lights. If it wasn’t for Tifa dragging him out, he would’ve been doing exactly that. However, he has to admit, the band Tifa kept on gushing about has him curious.

“Besides…” the bartender continued, “You’re in for a good show tonight”

Cloud raises an eyebrow, “Why is that?”

The bartender smirks, “My bud is playing tonight, and let me tell you…he puts on a good show. He’s well known in the town. Even more so in the town he’s from. Honestly, I don’t know how you don’t know him”

“…I don’t really keep up with the bands around here” Cloud shrugs. He glances over at Tifa, who is talking amongst a group of her friends closer to the stage. She tried inviting him to join them, be he insisted that he felt more comfortable staying by the bar. Fortunately, Tifa didn’t force him to join them, as she knows when Cloud just wants to sit back and watch.

Currently, The Turks were playing a few songs. They were more of an Alternative band. However, that red headed guy on the guitar…Reno? Believe that was his name. Every now and then he throws winks at the crowd and the clean cut guy with the long black hair on the keyboard…Tseng, keeps throwing him glares. Despite all that, they’re music is enjoyable. Nothing out of this world, but it’s pleasing to the ear.

After a few songs, they’re lead singer said her thank you’s and the band heads off stage. The lights began to dim and the crowd hushed themselves. Cloud looked around, confused by the sudden shift in tone. On the stage, shadows of the next band can be seen setting up. Once they are situated and have done they’re general tuning, the lights lit back up with a warm glow. The crowd suddenly started yelling with excitement. Cloud winced at the sudden change in volume.

“Hey heeeeey! It’s nice to see you all too!” A man yelled into the microphone. Judging by the fact that he was center stage, he was the vocalist, as well as the guitarist. Despite his colorful voice, the man had a strong presence. One could see the defined muscles of his arms, which most likely continued underneath his shirt. He wore a dark grey shirt that draped down to his waist; and dark ripped jeans that were fitted, but not tight; still left much to the imagination. His hair was black and slicked back with a few strands hanging in front of his face. He had piercings on both his ears, wearing black earrings on both. And his face…he was indeed handsome. He had a bright smile, bright eyes that were a mixture of blue and violet around the edges. He also had a scar on his left jaw that added a sense of mystery to him. But most importantly, his voice. His voice was smooth, but still had some grit in it.

 _'This seems to be the band everyone is excited about'_ Cloud thought to himself.

“It’s been a while since we’ve played here! It’s nice to see some familiar faces” The man winked, “I also see some new faces around, so I’ll introduce everyone” He focused on his other two bandmates, “On bass is Vincent, I don’t think he was a part of the band when we were last here, but let me tell you, he’s got some serious skills; and on drums is Angeal, he’s basically the rock of the band you know? Can’t keep a steady pace if you don’t have a steady rhythm going.” He pointed his thumb back towards himself, “And me? I’m Zack. Vocalist and guitarist. And we’re Crisis Core! For today, we’ve got a special song planned out for you guys! This is a new song that the three of us wrote together. You guys are the first to here it live! Hope you’re all ready!” he smirked and played a chord on his guitar. The crowd went crazy in response.

The lights dimmed once more before glowing various hues of purple and yellow once the band started to fill the bar with a rush of melodies. The crowd started moving their heads in unison as the melody continued. Even Cloud couldn't help but tap against the bar table to the rhythm. However, when Zack started singing, it was like Cloud was hit with a rush of emotions. Zack’s voice was much like his spoken one, however when he sang, there was so much emotion being pushed out, and paired with the melody of his guitar, erupted a foreign sensation within Cloud. Well…not necessarily foreign…he had felt something similar once.

As Zack’s voice seamlessly rose and fell throughout the song, Cloud felt his face grow hot. Was it because of the alcohol? The longer the song progressed, the more this all felt like a haze. His face grew hotter and hotter as the song reached its end. Suddenly, Zack let out an anguished belch and Cloud trembled from the sudden tone that filled the room. The music slowed and eventually stilled, Zack audibly catching his breathe. The crowd stared in awe for a moment before they started applauding.

Zack lowered his mouth to the mic once again, “Thank you guys! Hope you enjoyed the song! We sure as hell had a great time performing it! Until next time!” He waved before proceeding to unsling his guitar from around him. And the band began to clear off the stage. The lights dimmed off the stage and the rest of the room became more visible. With the live shows finished for the night, music started playing, since the bar acts as a club after the live shows.

Cloud still sat there in a daze. The bartender being the one to break him out of it, “Pretty good, huh?”

Cloud glanced over at the bartender and back at his drink and downed the rest of it. “Ya…” he quietly muttered.

“Cloud!” Tifa can be seen squeezing her way out of the crowd, making her way towards him. “See didn’t I tell you!” she final reached him, “they’re really good”. She smirked at him, noticing the mild pink flush on his face.

Cloud didn't say anything, just huffed. Taking that as a win for her, Tifa turned her attention to the bartender and asked him for a drink. As the bartender whipped up her drink, someone can be heard shouting for the bartender. The crowd seemed glued to whoever it was.

“Hey! Kunsel!” the man shouted. When he got closer, it was obvious to see who it was…the vocalist, Zack. Cloud turned away, trying to conceal a blush that attempted to emerge from his cheeks.

Kunsel turned towards Zack for a brief moment before finishing Tifa’s drink, “Seems like you were fired up today” he passed the drink over to Tifa, “You usually put on good shows, but today, you had a good vibe going”.

Zack shrugged, “Had to deliver the new song ya know”

“You cocky bastard” Kunsel teased.

Zack laughed then turned his attention towards Tifa. “Hey, I’ve seen you at a few shows before! Hope you enjoyed the new song” he grinned.

 _“So bright”_ Cloud thought.

“The song was really good! Like damn good! But you guys always make good music” She turned towards Cloud and pulled him into her, “I even brought my friend today just so he can hear you guys. Had a feeling he might like your guys music”

Zack looked over at Cloud and Cloud looked right back at him. For a second there seemed to be something…something exhilarating between their quiet exchange.

“So, did you like the show?” Zack asked, breaking their quiet exchange.

Cloud broke their eye contact and focused his eyes elsewhere, “…It wasn’t bad”

“Cloud!” Tifa shot a glare at him.

Zack chuckled, “It’s ok. Not like he said it was bad…” he rubbed the back of his neck, “…Cloud, is it?”

Hearing his name come out of Zack’s mouth caused his previous blush to emerge back onto his cheeks, “…yes?” Cloud was looking up at Zack through his bangs.

“If it’s alright with you…do you think maybe we could exchange numbers?” 

* * *

Aerith picked various flowers and placed them on her work desk. She had someone picking up the bouquet later today.

“You should have seen him, I swear I’ve never seen anyone so pretty before! Those blue eyes, that blonde hair….he was gorgeous I tell you!” Zack declared from the seat placed on the side of her desk.

“Aaaand…” Aerith said lifting her eyes from the flowers and directed her attention to him, “I know there’s no way you _didn’t_ say anything”

“Well…” Zack continued, “I did ask him for his number…but….”

“But?”

“He didn’t…give it to me” he sulked, slumping in the chair.

Aerith laughed, “To think I’d see the day where _Zack Fair_ is _rejected"_

“Oh stop, I was sure he’d give it to me”

“Hmm, why’s that? Did you talk to him before or something?”

“Well, kinda?” Zack said recalling their brief exchange from last night. “I asked if he enjoyed the show”

Aerith looked back at him, expecting him to continue on, but when she was just met with more silence, she looked at him in disbelief, “Is that _all_ you said?”

“Y-you should’ve been there though! That brief eye exchange we had; I was sure there was _something_ there. It was a gut feeling…”. He recalled the events of last night to Aerith.

*

_“Cloud..is it?” Zack asked looking at the blonde who seemed to be trying to hide the heat emerging from his skin. However, there were traces of it that could be seen on his ears. Zack smirked and let out a light chuckle._

_“…yes” Cloud peeked at him through his bangs._

_‘Fuck…he’s so…’ Zack thought to himself. He started rubbing at the back of neck nervously before he spoke up, “If it’s alright with you…do you think maybe we could exchange numbers?”_

_Cloud seemed to be surprised by the question, before composing himself. His expression turning into somewhat of a scowl, “Sorry, but no….I- I don’t have a phone…”_

_That was an obvious lie. It was in his hand…_

_Zack’s heart sunk, disappointed by the response, but that didn’t mean he was going to give up. “…Ok,” he grinned, “Maybe next time”_

_Cloud quickly lifted his head, surprise and possibly a hint of uncertainty lingering in his eyes. He didn’t say anything, but he pulled at his friend, signaling that he wanted to leave. The black-haired girl glanced at him and nodded. They gathered their things and walked past Zack. For split second, he feared that he had been making a move on him when he may have clearly had a girlfriend. However, she did say that he was a friend…so it was probably okay._

_Zack turned around and called out to the blonde once more, “See you at the next show, yeah?”_

_Cloud glanced at him over his shoulder and Zack could see his mouth moving. He couldn’t hear what the blonde was saying over the music, but he read his lips, “…Maybe”. Cloud and his friend disappeared into the crowd._

_Zack chuckled, a light shade of pink raising onto his skin, ‘So cute…’ he thought_

*

Aerith smiled, “He sounds like a shy one”

“Yeah…” Zack nodded in agreement.

“Just ease your way towards him. You don’t wanna scare him off. Assuming you haven’t already”

“You think I scared him off??” Zack asked flustered.

“I mean, he may have been overwhelmed. But, by the sound of it, seems like he enjoyed the show. So, you’ll probably see him again” she assured, tying the flowers at their stems.

Zack leaned towards the bouquet she was making, “Maybe I could give him one of your signature hybrid bouquets”

“Zack!”

“I know I know, I’m just joking. Ease my way in, I got it” he laughed. “But seriously how to do get flowers to be purple like that?”

“Skills and patience…something that you clearly don’t have” she teased.

“Hey! I totally have ski--” Zack abruptly got up from his chair but was interrupted before he could finish. His phone buzzed in his pocket. There was a text from Angeal.

Angeal: _Are y_ _ou finally going to send me some money over for a new drumhead, because YOU tore my old one_

Zack: _Ya y a, I’ll send the money now. Plz forgive me, don’t get to worked up, it’s bad for ur health_

Angeal: _Just send the money_

Zack typed in the amount of money and sent it over to Angeal. He waited for a response, but never got one.

Zack slumped back into the chair and crossed his arms, “A thank you would’ve been nice” he mumbled.

Aerith glanced over at him, “What’s up?”

“Angeal asking for the money I owe him, since I _accidentally_ tore his old drumhead. I just sent the amount to him”

“Why are you pouting?”

“He didn’t say thank you…”

She laughed, “I’m pretty you and me both know he’s just like that”

Zack chuckled, “Yeah…” He’s known Angeal for many years. Met at the train station when he was in college, “He’s just serious like that…besides, he said this was a good opportunity to check out this new music shop that he found hidden in one of the back alleys. Something about a possible hidden gem”

Aerith hums in acknowledgment, “There are hidden gems everywhere here in the slums”

* * *

Cloud was organizing some products in his shop. He owned a small music shop that was quite hidden from the public eye. He didn’t mind all much; made his rent much cheaper this way. The store wasn’t particularly large, but he had a range of instruments and accessories. He liked to keep his store diverse, rather than focusing on a handful of instruments. He also had a couple of studio rooms in the back of the store where customers could test out products or rent out the room for a few hours to practice with their band.

Currently there were one or two customers browsing through the store. He helped them find a few items and rung them out. He was the only one in the store before someone entered, causing the bell at the front door to chime. Cloud nodded at the man who entered. The man was tall and had straight black hair that was parted in the middle. He had strong facial features; at a glance he seemed intimidating, but upon closer inspection, there was a softness in his expression that can be seen. However, he looked kind of familiar, but Cloud couldn’t remember where he had seen him.

The man wandered around the store, looking through the isles, as if taking in every single item Cloud had in stock. Cloud approached the man, “Is there something I can help you find?”

“Drumheads. My old one had been torn so I was looking to replace it” the man said signaling at the bag he was carrying at his side.

Cloud glanced over at it, “A snare?” he asked.

Surprised that Cloud could tell from just the shape of the bag, he nodded “Yes”

Cloud hummed in acknowledgment and beckoned the man to follow him. Drumheads were found a few isles down from where they were.

“Is there a specific one you were looking to buy?” Cloud asked observing the man.

The man grabbed one of the heads from the hooks, “This is the one I’ve been using. There hasn’t been anything wrong with it, so I see no need to get something else”

“Hmm…so you like a deep muffled sound?” Cloud glanced over the other selections, “How about trying this one instead” the blonde grabbed one of the heads and handed it over to the man.

The man seemed reluctant as it was a brand he wasn’t familiar with.

“I’m sure you’ll like this one. This brand may not be as popular as the one you’re using now, but I assure you , they create quality drumheads. I’m not forcing you to buy it, but I think it’ll be worth your time to test it out” Cloud said, noticing the man’s uncertainty.

“Alright, I’ll take you up on the offer” the man followed Cloud into one of the studio rooms and pulled his snare out of the bag that was slung around his shoulder. He began to fasten the drumhead Cloud had recommended to him. He tapped around the rim, adjusting the lugs on the side of the drum. He pulled out a pair of drumsticks from his bag and glanced over at Cloud who was casually leaning against the wall. The man began to beat a simple rhythm. His eyes widen and a smile crept up on his face. He tried a more complex rhythm after.

He stopped and looked over to Cloud, “It’s perfect”

Cloud smirked pushing himself off the wall, “Told you, you’d like it”

“Why were you so confident though? Most are about the same in sound, but this one…this one really feels different”

“I’ve been looking into this brand for a while. They’ve started using different materials, so I got curious and tried some of them for myself”

“You play drums?”

“Not really. I can make a simple rhythm, but I’m not _good_ by any means”

The man hummed, “I suppose I’ll buy this one. I’ll take a second one so that I can change out my other snare to match”

Cloud nodded and the two headed out of the studio room. He grabbed a matching drumhead and took them to the counter. “I’ll give you discount for these since it’s you’re first time here” he says while scanning the items. He carefully wrapped the items and slid them into a paper bag.

“You seem to know quite a lot” the man spoke up.

“I own a music shop, might as well know my own products” Cloud shrugged.

“I don’t think that’s it. The way you instantly knew what sound I liked by the drumhead I’ve been using, and you were easily able to direct me towards another one that was exponentially better for me. I may be mistaken, but it seems like you have a gifted ear towards music and sound”

Cloud glanced at him through his bangs and slid the bag over to him. “I wouldn’t say all that”.

The man hummed, “What’s your name young man?”

“Ah…Cloud” the blonde reluctantly said. He really didn't like people asking for his name all that much.

“Okay, let me tell you, Cloud. I know talent when I see it” the man said confidently.

Cloud cocked his head to the side “I- I see…”

The man chuckled, “Oh, where are my manners. I’m Angeal”

 _‘Angeal…Angeal…that sounded familiar’_ Cloud thought.

“I think I’ll bring in my bandmates here sometime. Think you can find something suitable for them?”

“…Probably”

Angeal grabbed the bag carrying his newly purchased items, “Thank you for this” He made his way to the front door and waved goodbye before exiting the store.

Cloud glanced over at the clock: 5:50pm. He decided to close the store a little early. After locking up, he swung by one of the nearby corner stores to grab dinner. He doesn’t particularly like the box dinners they have, but he was too lazy to try and attempt to make his own dinner. With dinner carefully placed in his bag, he began his short walk home. Cloud didn’t live too far from the shop, it was only about a ten minute walk. However, his apartment complex was located on top of a hill, which meant that he had to climb the hill on his way back home. Not that he disliked it, he was just not in the mood for extra exercise after getting off work. On the bright side, the weather was always pleasant this time of day, despite the general air quality under the plate.

Cloud reached the elevator of the apartment and rode it up the fifth floor. Once the elevator reached his level, Cloud stepped out and walked down the left hallway. His apartment was at the end of the hall. He unlocked the door and turned on the lights as he stepped in. The kitchen was immediately on the left and he placed his box dinner in the microwave. As he waited, he looked out the window in the living area. One benefit of living on top of the hill and on one of the upper floors of said apartment meant that he had a nice view of the city. It may not have been the prettiest view in the world, but it was still a view.

After his dinner finished warming up, he grabbed it and took a seat at the table. The table wasn’t anything large since it was just him, but it was big enough to seat two people. Cloud started to pick at his dinner beginning to get lost in his thoughts. He began to think about the man, Angeal, who had came into the shop today. He looked familiar…where had Cloud seen him…

“Ah…” Cloud remembered, “…he was the drummer of that band, Crisis Core”

He rubbed his head in frustration and embarrassment, remembering his exchange with Zack last night. He had tried to keep his mind off it, but now that he wasn’t really doing anything, the memories were resurfacing.

*

_“If it’s alright with you…do you think maybe we could exchange numbers?” Zack asked._

_‘He’s asking for my number? Why?’ Cloud thought. He started to become flustered not knowing what to say. He eventually calmed himself. “Sorry, but no…I, I- don’t have a phone” Cloud answered… He glanced down at his hand… Oh yeah, his phone was in his hand._

_Cloud glanced over at Zack without turning his head. He seemed to also notice the phone in his own hands. Zack seemed upset for a moment, “..Ok” his mood shifted, all of a sudden he was grinning at Cloud…so bright… “Maybe next time”_

_He said ‘Maybe next time’…next time? Surprised, Cloud turned his head up to Zack. Zack was smiling at him. ‘He…he really means it’ Cloud thought to himself, ‘but why?…we don’t know each other…and I’m not particularly interesting…’_

_Growing more and more flustered, he pulled at Tifa. She glanced over at him, and nodded when she understood the eyes he gave her. He kept his head down as the gathered their things and walked past Zack. When they were a few feet away from Zack, Cloud heard his voice all of a sudden._

_“See you at the next show, yeah?” Zack shouted back at them._

_Cloud felt his heart clench…’No’ he thought, ‘I can’t…this feeling…it’s dangerous, but…’. Cloud was curious. Zack who’s smile was so bright, who’s voice was so hypnotizing, who seemed harmless…_

_Cloud glanced over at Zack. “…Maybe”, he wasn’t even sure if his voice even came out, but he hoped Zack heard him…_

*


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We got those Zack x Cloud interactions moving in boisssss

“Where are we going again?” Zack asks Angeal.

Zack, Angeal and Vincent walk through the slums of sector 7. There is a mild breeze moving through, which makes the walk much more pleasant despite the late summer heat. They walk through the narrow roads, weaving through people.

“The music shop” he flatly says.

“Is this the one you went to a few days ago? Did they have a lot of products or something?” Zack asks.

“They did have a good selection of items, but that’s not quite why I wanna take you both there”

“Why then?”

“I want you both to meet the shop owner, Cloud”

Zack stops walking, his thoughts catching up to him, “Did you say Cloud??”

Angeal cocks an eyebrow, “Yes, have you met him?”

“Uhhh…not really…” Zack begins to get lost in his thoughts, _‘Was this even the same Cloud? I mean there aren’t a lot of people named Cloud anyway…What if it is him though??’_ Zack starts to fidget with excitement.

“Did the shop owner recommend those drumheads for you?” Vincent speaks up from behind them.

“Yes, the kid seems to be fairly knowledgeable. I think meeting him would benefit you both. Can maybe learn a few things” Angeal explains.

“Wait, Cloud recommended you those drumheads?” Zack asks surprised.

“Yeah, I was gonna buy the ones I usually get, but he recommended me the other ones. When I tried them out, they were perfect”.

“…They do sound good” Vincent quietly agrees.

Zack slowly becomes more smitten with Cloud by the second. _‘He’s even smart aaand he’s knowledgeable in music….he’s perfect’_ Zack thinks to himself. “So how far out is the shop?” he asks, becoming more excited at the thought that he gets to see Cloud again.

“Not far, it should be around here” Angeal explains.

They round the corner and there’s a door hidden in the shadows. Angeal is the first to walk in, Zack and Vincent follow.

There is no audible hello, but Zack notices Angeal nod his head at someone. Zack quickly flips his head in the direction Angeal was facing. He swore he saw the faint glimpse of blonde hair, but it disappeared between the aisles. Zack feels the urge to go after the blonde, but Aerith’s words echo in his head, _‘Ease your way to him’_. Zack takes a deep breath and calms himself before going through the store.

The three of them browse through the shop. Angeal is just looking around, Vincent is browsing through the bass accessories, and Zack… Zack looked like he was looking around, however, he kept looking across the store to see if he could spot Cloud.

Zack suddenly flips around when he hears Vincent ask someone a question.

“Could you recommend me a good pickup. I’ve never really used one before, but I heard they negate the buzzing. So, I was interested in buying one”

Zack stalks closer until he caught a glimpse of the blonde. He keeps a safe distance and just watches Cloud. He’s wearing a baggy white t-shirt that is cropped right above his waist with a black shirt worn underneath. His jeans are skinny and emphasized the shape of his legs. Although slim, one could tell there were light muscles sculpted on him.

“Pickups, huh?” Cloud begins to explain to Vincent, “I’ll have you know that not all pickups negate the buzzing. Some actually pick up more buzzing than others. But if you’re looking for something that will dampen the buzz then…” Cloud glances through the shelving before picking up the item he’s looking for, “This is a double-coil, it’s also called a humbucker. This one isn’t anything fancy, but given that this is your first time using one, I think this will be a good starting place for you”. He hands Vincent the product and offers if he wants to try it out in the studio room. Vincent nods and Cloud leads him towards the back. Zack just watches….

“What are you doing?”

“Woah!” Zack flinches and turns around. Angeal is staring at him. “Uhh, I’m….I’m looking around?”

Angeal hums, “You mean stalking around?” He crosses his arms, “Have you met him before? Cloud I mean”

Zack sighs, knowing he won’t be able to fool Angeal, “Yeah, we met at the last live show”

“He was at the last live?”

“Yeah, his friend had brought him. We exchanged a few words and that’s how I met Cloud”

“Mm, why don’t you talk to him then?”

“W-Well….” Zack tries to find the words.

“You made a pass at him?” Angeal knowingly says.

“What?! No…” he glances at Angeal’s knowing eyes… “Yes…but-“

“You were rejected”

Zack looks away. He really couldn’t hide anything from Angeal. 

Angeal smirks and places a hand on Zack’s shoulder, “I’m sure you’ll work it out”

Before Zack’s able to ask him what he meant, Cloud and Vincent came out of the studio room.

“Find something?” Angeal asks Vincent.

Vincent nods and they all head towards the counter. Cloud walks around to the other side of the counter and scans the item placing it in a small bag.

Zack keeps his eyes on Cloud, hoping he can see those pretty blues again. However, Cloud doesn’t throw him one glance. Just avoids his gaze. Before he knows it, the three of them are heading back to the station.

Zack’s thoughts start to swell up in his head, _‘Did I really scare him off?? I didn’t want to scare him…I just wanted to get to know him. He can’t hate me right?? I was gonna ease into it like Aerith said but…but if I already scared him off then…then…’_

There’s nothing left to lose.

Zack stops walking coming to the realization. He glances over Angeal and Vincent who are walking in front of him, “Hey guys…”

The two turn around and look at him.

“I think…I think there’s something I actually wanna go get”

“Should we go with you?” Vincent asks.

“Nah, I’ll just meet up with you guys later, yeah?”

The two nod and Zack starts to make his way back to the shop.

His heart racing and the adrenaline rushes through him.

_I’m not just gonna give up._

* * *

Cloud remains at the counter, resting his head in his arms. He knew Angeal was going to bring his other two bandmates, but he was expecting them weeks later, not days. Cloud wasn’t prepared to see Zack again so soon. Cloud grunts. He had hid in between the aisles immediately when he saw Zack walk through the door; and he did his best to remain out of Zack’s sight, but it seemed like Zack was deliberately trying to follow him. When he was ringing Vincent out, he could feel Zack’s eyes digging into him.

_‘Is he mad at me for lying about not having a phone? I mean, know one’s ever asked for my number after exchanging a few words…Most people just give up after trying to talk to me…’_

Cloud’s immediately taken out of his thoughts by the chime at the front door. He glances to see who had come in. His eyes widen and he immediately flips his head back down.

_‘Why is he here again??’_ Cloud panics. He takes deep breathes to calm himself down. He hears then man approach him. He stops in front of the counter, across from Cloud.

“…Hey” the man gently says.

Calming himself, Cloud looks up at the man.

Zack…just as he remembered him. His black hair, his violet blue eyes, his scar; he looks good….

_‘Ok, don’t stutter’_ Cloud thinks to himself. “D-Did you wanna buy something after all?” _Shit…_

Zack seems to be thinking about something before he responds, “Well…there is something I _wanna_ buy, but I can’t exactly get it here”

Cloud looks at him confused, tilting his head to the side, “What do you mean? Are you looking for like a special model? If so, I have a few in the back, if you wanna look at those”.

Zack chuckles.

Cloud feels his face heating up, _‘Why is he laughing?’_

“No no, I don’t need anything like that” Zack says waving his hand.

“….Then what….”

“I’m asking if I can buy you dinner sometime” Zack states, looking Cloud in the eye.

“…Dinner? …Like, a date?”

“You got it” Zack winks.

“But…why?” Cloud asks, genuinely confused.

“Why?” Zack looks back at Cloud, confused also, “Because I’m interested in you of course. I’d like to get to know you….if you’d allow me. Er I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to. I don’t wanna scare you off or anything…” Zack’s eyes fill with concern.

“Scare me off? Why would- ….I thought you were mad at me…for lying” Cloud says throwing Zack a glance through his bangs.

“Lying? ….Oh! About the phone. Nah, you’re ok” he grins, “I think I may have came off too strong. I still had adrenaline pumping through me after the show”

“So you’re not mad?”

“No I’m not…Is that why you were avoiding me today?”

Cloud nods his head. His heart was beating so fast right now…

Zack laughs, “So this was all just a misunderstanding” He runs his fingers through his hair. “How about this. Let’s start over?”

When Cloud fully turns his attention to him, Zack is looking him in the eye.

“I’m Zack” he grins.

It takes Cloud a minute to realize why Zack is introducing himself again… _‘He said start over…’_

Oh…

“….Cloud” the blonde nods.

“So, Cloud. If it’s alright with you, can I take you out Saturday night?”

Cloud looks into Zacks’s eyes. That same feeling from the first time they locked eyes starts flooding into him. His heart starts to beat faster and his face starts to heat up the longer his eyes linger on Zack’s. His curiosity gets the best of him.

“…Sure” he quietly mutters.

Zack gives him the widest smile he’s probably ever seen. Causes the red to rise up onto his cheeks.

“Alright! I’ll plan something out!” Cloud could see the excitement oozing from him. “I’ll text you the- Oh…um…should I just swing by here sometime and tell you the details?”

Cloud glances over towards his phone that was under the table, _‘It should be okay’_

“I’ll give you my number” Cloud says, reaching for his phone.

“Really?? You totally don’t have to”

Cloud throws a glare at him, as if saying ‘do you want the number or not?’

“Ah…I’ll take it, I’ll take it” Zack stumbles pulling his phone out of his pocket.

The two exchange numbers and Zack stares down at his phone as if he’s won the lottery.

“I’ll text you before Saturday, okay?” Zack smiles at the blonde.

“…okay” Cloud really can’t get used to that smile of his. Always so bright.

“Alright, I’ll see you Saturday!” Before he leaves the store, he waves at Cloud, like a child. Cloud suppresses a chuckle that nearly slips out.

After Zack leaves, Cloud rests his head back on the counter. This time with different feelings. Excitement maybe? He feels giddy inside and kinda nervous, but also a little scared.

_What if the same thing happens again…_

* * *

Zack kicks off his shoes as he enters his apartment. He turns on the lights and is immediately reminded that his apartment is well…kinda messy. Zack sighs. He really should clear up some of this stuff. He had sheets of paper containing the melodies he writes scattered across the floor of the living room. There weren’t any lyrics written for them because honestly, Zack wasn’t very good at writing lyrics. His guitar is propped up against the wall, a pair of headphones sitting on the floor next to it. Some blankets and pillows are placed on his couch since he often fell asleep there.

Zack slips himself into the bathroom, removing his clothes and hoping into the shower.

He gets out of the shower and throws on a pair of grey sweatpants. He didn’t like wearing a shirt around his apartment since it often got pretty warm. The AC doesn’t blow through his apartment very well. Probably the reason why the rent is so cheap. He glances over to his bedroom. Maybe he’ll sleep in his bed for once. He sits on his bed, propping himself up with a few of the pillows. He grabs his phone and immediately texts Aerith.

Zack: _Guess what?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?_

A few minutes pass and Zack sees the three dots, indicating that she’s typing.

Aerith: _Zack….its 11pm_

Zack glances over the clock. He didn’t notice how much time had passed. Did he wake her up? His phone buzzes again.

Aerith: _But what’s up? Something good happen. And before u ask. No u didn’t wake me up_

Zack: _Oh good had me worried there lol_

Zack: _But I ASKED HI M OUT!_

_Zack: and he said YES!!!_

Aerith: _you asked out Cloud?? Didn’t I tell you to chill out the other day but I guess its fine since he said yes_

Zack: _ya well I kinda thought that I scared him off, so I just assumed I had nothing to lose_

Aerith: _sounds like you lol_

Aerith: _so howd u ask him?_

Zack: _well it seemed like there was a misunderstanding. He thought I was mad at him and I thought he wanted nothing to do with me lol so after that was all cleared up I just kinda asked him_

Zack: _got his number to_

Aerith: _oh good for you! Now all you gotta do is not blow it lol_

Zack: _!!! I WONT BLOW IT_

Aerith: _lol u have anything planned?_

Zack: _not yet I just wanted to tell you first before thinking of some ideas_

Aerith: _alright, just make sure to think about things he might like. Not just u ok?_

Zack: _I know how to plan a date!!!!_

Aerith: _mhmm sure_

Zack: _come on u used to enjoy our dates_

Aerith: _lmaooooooo_

Aerith: _I’m going to bed goonight_

Zack: _wait hold up what is that supposed to mean?????_

Zack stares at his phone, waiting for a response, but he never gets one. He sighs, _‘I plan out good dates’_

Zack opens up the browser on his phone and starts searching for possible places to take Cloud to.

“Hmm places he might wanna go to…” he says to himself scrolling through his search.

He wasn’t too sure what kind of food Cloud would like. Maybe Wutaian? Should he take him somewhere casual or somewhere a bit fancier? Casual is probably the safer bet. Seemed like he might make Cloud uncomfortable if he took him somewhere fancy. Should they go for desserts later? Does Cloud even like sweets? Should they just go for dinner? But before all that, should Zack pick him up? He had a motor bike, it wasn’t anything fancy. It was just a used sport bike he had bought from someone. He had to fix it up a bit, he really only rode it if he was making a long trip, but it could hold both him and Cloud; and this was kind of a special occasion.

Zack opens up his contacts and scrolls over to Cloud. He sends him a message.

Zack: _Hey, sorry for the late message. But um, would u mind if I picked u up Saturday?_

He put his phone down on the nightstand next to his bed, expecting an answer in the morning. However, to his surprise, his phone buzzed not long after he set it down. He turns the phone over and finds a message waiting for him.

Cloud: _I don’t mind but is that ok with u? u don’t have to go through so much_

A smile rises on Zack’s face.

Zack: _don’t worry, I don’t mind at all_ 😊 _I want to pick you up_

It takes a couple minutes for Cloud to reply.

Cloud: _alright. Ill wait for you Saturday_

As he’s about to set his phone back on the nightstand, it buzzes again. There’s another message from Cloud.

Cloud: 😊

Cloud: _sorry was that weird?_

Zack couldn’t help but laugh to himself. _‘He’s so cute’_

Zack: _lol not at all! I’ll see you on Saturday_ 😊😊 _sleep well ok_

With that, Zack sets his phone down for good and situates himself in bed. He rolls onto his side and closes his eyes. His heart beating in excitement. He really couldn’t wait until Saturday.

* * *

Cloud lays in his bed, staring at the ceiling. He had really agreed to go on a date with Zack… He hasn’t gone on a date in….years actually. He’s incredibly nervous. Hence the reason why he just can’t sleep.

He glances over at a box in the corner of the room. It’s stuffed with papers…

Suddenly, fear starts trickling into him. What if Zack didn’t like him? What if Zack found him boring? What if Zack thought he was weird? What if….Zack was lying about being interested in him? He abruptly sits up. Feeling a little nauseous, he gets out of bed and goes to grab some water from the kitchen. He drinks the glass of water and takes a deep breath.

_In and out._

He glances over at the clock.

Midnight.

Lucky for him, the shop is closed tomorrow so he can sleep in. He drags himself back into his room and plops down on his bed. His mind seems to have calmed down a bit, but his heart continued to pound in his chest. Cloud continues to steady his breath to calm his nerves.

_In_

_Out_

_In_

_Out_

Cloud’s interrupted when he sees the glow of his screen reflecting off the ceiling. He turns over and finds a text from Zack.

Zack: _Hey, sorry for the late message. But um, would u mind if I picked u up Saturday?_

Zack wants to pick him up? He doesn’t have to…but it also doesn’t sound like a bad idea…

Cloud: _I don’t mind but is that ok with u? u don’t have to go through so much_

Zack: _don’t worry, I don’t mind at all_ 😊 _I want to pick you up_

Cloud stares at the message. He couldn’t suppress the blush coloring his face. There’s just something about Zack that makes him feel….different? Cloud really couldn’t put it into words. Ever since he watched Zack’s performance, Cloud felt something light back up in him again. As if he wanted to try again…. But that was…

Scary.

But he wants to. He wants to move on. Tifa’s always reminding him, but he knows better than anyone else that he can’t stay like this forever. That’s why this time…this time will be different…

Cloud finally replies.

Cloud: _alright. Ill wait for you Saturday_

He closes his eyes and remembers the smile Zack always wears…

_‘Should I show more expressions? Tifa’s always saying I look stern most of the time…’_

He sends another message.

Cloud: 😊

He immediately blushes from embarrassment…

Cloud: _sorry was that weird?_

Zack: _lol not at all! I’ll see you on Saturday_ 😊😊 _sleep well ok_

_‘You too’_ Cloud thinks to himself.

He turns off his phone and closes his eyes. His face twitches….a smile maybe?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Looks like next chapter is date timeeeee u3u 
> 
> Also looks like I've tossed the schedule into the trash lol I've made the most of my 2 days off. I'll just try to update as much as I can before classes start. Then when they do, I'll prolly update once a week. But ngl I'm just excited to write these boys having a grand ol time with each other hehe
> 
> Anyway I'll see you all next chapter :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's date time you guys!

_*_

_Cloud: Tifa… I need ur advice on something_

_Tifa: Clou-d! Yes of course! U rarely ask me for advice (///u///)_

_Cloud: well the thing is_

_He wasn’t sure how to word this…She’ll probably freak out no matter how he words it._

_Cloud: I have a…_

_Cloud: date…on Saturday and I’m kinda nervous. Like how should I act?_

_There was a pause before a flood of messages came pooling into Cloud’s phone._

_Tifa: !!!!!!_

_Tifa: Wait! U Have a DATE?!?!?!?!!_

_Tifa: With who???_

_Tifa: When did this happen??_

_Tifa: Do I know him??_

_He sighed, he figured this would be her reaction, but still._

_Cloud: I mean, I suppose u know him, but not like personally_

_Tifa: ??? hmmmm I cant think of anyone like that_

_Cloud: …we saw him just the other night…at the bar_

_Tifa: …the bartender?_

_Cloud sighed. He really didn’t want to just say it._

_Cloud: No the other guy…_

_There was no response for a few minutes._

_Tifa: !!!! OMG no fucking way!_

_Tifa: Ur talking about Zack right??? I mean he’s the only other guy who we talked to_

_Tifa: Cloud howww??? How’d you score someone so so…good ;-;_

_Tifa: Wait now that I think about it, he was asking for ur number…but u told some dumb lie lol_

_He blushed._

_Cloud: He surprised me ok_

_Tifa: ok ok, whatever u say. U gotta tell me the details later ok. I’ll come by ur place on Saturday. Is he picking u up?_

_Cloud: wait what? Ya he’s picking me up. But what’s this about u coming by?_

_Tifa: Cloud. As if I’m gonna leave u to dress for yourself. Especially with a date this important! I’ll make u irresitable >:) _

_Cloud: Tifa…no. U don’t need to do that_

_Tifa: Alright! See u Saturday u3u_

_He sighed. Knowing Tifa, he was scared about what she was planning. Hopefully it wouldn’t be anything too crazy…_

_*_

_Saturday night_.

Tifa rummages through Cloud’s closet.

“Ugh, don’t you have any nicer clothes?” Tifa huffs, flipping through the different shirts.

“I like comfortable things” Cloud says as he lays flat on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

When Cloud told Tifa about his date with Zack, she practically lost it. She insisted that she was going to dress him up. Something about making him irresitable? So, she’s here going through his closet a few hours before Zack is supposed to pick him up.

“So how’d he ask you out anyway?” Tifa asks, poking her head out the closet.

“He just kinda asked”

“Cloud. I want the details” she giggles.

Cloud sighs, “Well he came back to the shop…”

“He came back?”

“Yeah, he was there earlier with his bandmates. But anyway, he came back. We talked for a little, then he just kinda asked all of a sudden…Oh I guess there was a misunderstanding between us also. I thought he was mad at me and he thought I was scared off by him or something”

“Why’d you think he was mad at you?”

“…Well cuz I lied…about not having a phone”

Tifa laughs remembering the situation, “Oh yeah, I totally forgot about that. Pretty sure it was more funny than anything else”

Cloud huffs, waiting for Tifa to stop laughing, “Are you done?”

“Yeah, yeah” she whips the tears from her eyes.

He sighs again. He glances over at her in the closet. Seems she almost done. He can see some clothes laid out.

“Alright! I think I’ve got it” she walks out the closet with an outfit draped over her arms, as well as a pair of shoes she’s carrying in her hands. He sits up as Tifa lays the clothes flat on the bed and placing the shoes on the floor.

Cloud glances over at the clothes. It actually wasn’t that bad. Still suited his style.

“Oh!” Tifa runs over to her purse and pulls some things out, “Accessories” she beams.

There it is. That Tifa flare…

“Go on go on. We’re running out of time!” She places the accessories on the bed, and she walks out of the room closing the door.

He starts to get changed.

Tifa’s sitting on the couch when she hears the door open. She flips her head and sees Cloud standing there, with his unamused face. She gets up and approaches him. Looking him up and down. Cloud’s wearing a baggy white t-shirt that exposed his collar bones; black skinny ripped jeans that were cut off at the ankle, and a pair of black leather ankle boots. As for his accessories, she had him put on a black choker that tied around his neck and a pair of black earrings that had silver chains dangling from them. She hums.

“Perfect! You look good” she smiles.

Cloud brushes against his collar bones, “You sure this isn’t too much”

She brushes away the idea, “No not at all. It makes you seem a little flirtatious. Gotta give him something” she giggles.

“F-Flirtatious…” he blushes. The fact that this is really happening starts settling in, “Tifa…”

She notices his hesitance. She looks at him gently, “Hey, it’ll be fine. Trust me, I know this is completely different from last time. The same thing won’t happen”

He glances down at her. Unsure. Anxious… “People can change Tifa…”

She sighs and places a hand on his shoulder, “Cloud. That was then. This is now. You can’t keep living in the past. And besides. You’re not alone. I’ll always be here for you, whether you want me to or not, okay?”

A smile sneakily creeps up on his face, “Yeah…”

“And…I know you’re interested in him as well” She smirks.

He didn’t say anything.

She smiles, removing her hand from his shoulder and pats him on the back, “Just focus on having fun. Don’t fret about things that may or may not happen. You two are going on your first date, make the most out of it. And just take things one step at a time okay?” She gives him an assuring smile.

“I think I should head out now. He should be getting here pretty soon; and I gotta go open up the bar” She grabs her things and goes over to the front door and opens it. Throwing him one last assuring grin she gives him a thumbs up, “Good luck!”

“…Thanks, Tifa”

The door closes as she walks out.

Cloud takes a deep breath, calming his nerves. Now he just has to wait…

* * *

_8:05pm_

Zack’s supposed to pick him up at 8 o’clock…it’s 5 after and he hasn’t heard anything from him. Cloud texted Tifa, but she told him he’s fine, it’s too early to start panicking. She said he could start panicking if he’s 15 minutes late and doesn’t get a message from him. However, Cloud couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Was he being stood up?

Suddenly there’s a loud knock at his front door. It startles him.

He opens the door.

It’s Zack.

Cloud glances at him, from head to toe. Zack is wearing all black; black jeans, black shirt, black leather jacket. He seems to be catching his breath. He checks his phone and looks down at Cloud, “Only 5 minutes late” he lets out a tired smile.

“D-Did you get lost?” Cloud stutters, his anxiety was really getting the best of him just a second ago.

“Nah, just had to help Angeal with something. Took a little longer than I thought it would.” He glances down at Cloud, “The choker is cute”

Cloud blushes.

“You ready to go?”

He nods and walks out the door of his apartment, locking it behind him.

They ride down the elevator and the whole way, he can feel Zack looking at him. He glances over at him. They’re eyes meet.

“You look really good you know,” Zack says. A grin appearing on his face.

“Y-you…are you gonna be like this all night?” Cloud asks flustered. He’s pulling at his bangs on the side of his face.

“I could if you want me to” Zack teases.

“Please don’t”

Zack chuckles as the elevator doors open. “Come on, let’s go” he taps Cloud on the shoulder, telling him to follow. Zack leads him to a motorbike and suddenly tosses a helmet at him. Luckily, he wasn’t too out of it, he’s able to catch it.

“Put that on. Wouldn’t want you cracking your skull open”

“Are you that bad of a driver?” Cloud teases.

He huffs, “No, but I tend drive fast”

Cloud hums, he likes that.

They both get on the bike, Cloud straddling Zack from behind. He starts the engine and glances behind him, “You okay with Wutaian?”

Cloud nods.

“Alright, hold on tight”

Cloud wraps his arms around Zack and leans in towards his back. So warm…

Zack revs the engine before riding out of the area. Once they merge onto the highway, Cloud can feel the wind moving through them now. It’s nice, reminds him of how much he loves riding. He currently had his bike in the shop for some modifications, so it’d be a while before he got it back. He watches as the buildings flip pass them as they move further along the highway.

_Just focus on having fun…_

Cloud releases one arm from Zack’s waist, moving it to rest right behind him. He leaves his other arm on Zack’s waist, loosening his grip, but still tight enough that he doesn’t fall off. He leans back a bit. He can tell he scared Zack for a second. His head flipped over towards his direction but went back to the road when he saw he was okay.

Cloud closes his eyes, taking in the feeling of the wind.

* * *

“You scared me back there you know. Leaning back like that all of a sudden. I really thought you fell off” Zack explains as they get off the bike. Doesn’t think he’s known anyone who would just lean back like that all of a sudden. Well…except for himself.

“…The wind felt nice” Cloud mutters, slightly dazed.

He sighs, “You’re unbelievable”

They walk into a small hole-in-the-wall restaurant and grab a table that’s placed near the front entrance. Zack takes the seat facing the door and Cloud takes the one across from him. It’s incredibly warm in the restaurant because of the open kitchen. The heat from the grill spreading through the tight space. A waitress soon comes by and hands them both menus.

Cloud’s glancing around the restaurant as if taking in every single detail. It’s heavily decorated with oriental tapestries hung on the walls. There’s a large fish tank in the corner.

“Have you been here before?” Cloud asks, focusing his attention back on Zack.

“Yeah, I often come here with Angeal and Vincent. This is kinda like our hangout when it comes to dinner… Ah-“ he realizes something, “Not that I took you here for like a casual hangout. This is still a date. I just had so much trouble thinking of a restaurant…I wasn’t really sure what you’d like” he nervously admits.

A faint smile rises on Cloud’s face, “What would you have done if I said no to Wutaian then?”

“Uhhhh……ice cream?”

“Don’t think that’s dinner” The smile on Cloud’s face becomes more predominant.

Taking notice Zack speaks up, ”You really should sm-“

“Are you ready to order?” the waitress asks returning to their table, filling some cups of water, and placing the two cups in front of them both.

“I’ll have the stir fry. Mild please” Cloud says, closing his menu.

The waitress writes his order down and glances over at Zack, “And for you sir?”

“The usual”

The waitress nods and delivers their order to the kitchen.

“You really are a regular” Cloud points out.

“You think I’d lie about that?? And besides, _mild_ , really?”

“I don’t like my food too spicy alright. Do you get yours spicy?”

“Extra spicy actually. Wutaian hot”

Cloud gapes, “That’s…that’s too much spice”

“It’s _good_ spice” Zack corrects him.

A few minutes later, the waitress returns with their food. Cloud’s stir fry looks bright and refreshing. Zack’s rice noodle soup on the other hand just looks…spicy. So much red.

The two eat in silence as they were both pleased with their meals. After an hour passes, Zack pays for their meals and they step out of the restaurant.

“You okay with taking a little walk? Burn off some of those calories?” he asks.

Cloud nods in agreement, “Sure”

Zack guides him in a direction. They end up on a wide road that’s filled with stalls. Probably the market.

“I used to play here for some extra cash” Zack points at an open area in the middle of the market.

“With the band?”

“Nah, I wasn’t part of the band then. Just me. But I guess this is where Angeal had found me”

“He scouted you?” Cloud asks, tilting his head towards Zack.

Zack hums, “Apparently they were looking for a new vocalist to replace their old one”

“Wait, you weren’t always the vocalist of Crisis Core?”

He shakes his head, “I’ve been the vocalist for about 4 years now. But according to Angeal, the band’s been active for around 8 years. Vincent is also a replacement. He was recruited 2 years ago…”

He notices the surprised look on Cloud’s face.

“What?” Zack asks.

“Well, it’s just that, you guys have great chemistry. Seems like you guys have been playing together since day one”

He lets out a small grin, “Thanks. Honestly, Angeal’s such a big part of that. Really knows how to put things together”

Zack pauses, “What about you? How long have you had the shop?”

Surprised by the topic suddenly shifting about him, Cloud responds, “It’s been about…3 years now”

“That long…wait? How old were you??”

“21”

Zack gapes, “21?? Man, I was dicking around at 21”

“I think most people were…”

He hums, “What made you wanna open it?”

They were getting into a topic Cloud didn’t like talking about very much. So much had happened during that time in his life. Opening the shop wasn’t exactly part of his plans. He just needed to pick himself back up, and Tifa had recommended he open the shop. He didn’t mind running it. Kept his mind busy…

“I just…I just like music and needed something to do” That necessarily _wasn’t_ a lie.

“So, opening a shop was the first idea to come to mind” Zack chuckles, “How ambitious”

It wasn’t ambitious at all…he needed an outlet.

Zack notices an arcade, and tugs at his arm. “Cloud! You like playing games?”

Before he could answer, Zack’s already pulling him into the arcade.

The arcade flashes various hues of red, green, and purple. The neon lights from the machines reflecting off the white walls. There’s a wide variety of games. Zack buys some tokens from the counter and brings Cloud to one of those 2-player Western shooters.

They end up wasting a majority of their tokens on that game. Not as though they were _bad_ at it, but both of them, mostly Zack, tended to make fatal mistakes during crucial parts of the game.

Zack takes a step back placing the blue gun back into the socket in front of him, “Man, we were so close to the end too”

“I think we would have made it if _you_ hadn’t wasted all your bullets on that one enemy” Cloud crosses his arms, seemingly frustrated. However, there isn’t any bite in his voice. He’s just teasing.

“He wasn’t going down!” Zack shouts in disbelief, “It was like he had infinite health, it freaked me out!” Zack throws a pleading look at Cloud as if saying, _‘Please don’t be mad, I tried my best’_

Cloud sighs, his expression softening, “I suppose you have a point there”. Cloud glances around the arcade, “Is there something else you wanna play?”

Zack bounces up at the idea and looks across the area, scanning the different machines. One in, particular, catches his eye, “Oh! Cloud, let’s play that one!”. Zack grabs onto Cloud’s hand and pulls him to the other machine that’s placed in the middle of the arcade.

It’s a Rock Band styled machine. There’s a guitar and even a mic neatly aligned underneath the screen.

“Let’s do a song out of this?” Zack’s already putting 5 tokens into the machine and flipping through the different songs. He finds a song and slings the guitar over his torso, handing the mic over to Cloud.

Cloud, hesitant to grab onto the mic, looks up to Zack, “You want me to do vocals?”. He really wasn’t sure if he could do it. There were so many people around who’d be able to hear him; he hadn’t sung in front of a crowd since…his college days. However, a part of him wanted to sing. Wanted to know what it’d be like to perform with Zack. Although, this isn’t exactly an _actual_ performance. They were just having fun…

_Having fun…_

“Um…I mean if you’d rather play the guitar, I don’t mind doing vocals” Zack says, rubbing the back of his neck. He honestly just liked playing the guitar on these games, but if Cloud really was uncomfortable singing…he wouldn’t mind swapping.

Cloud takes a deep breath and gently takes the mic from Zack’s hand, “No, I- I’ll do it”

“You sure? I really don’t mind”

Cloud shakes his head, his grip on the mic becoming tighter, “I can do it”.

He wasn’t entirely sure if he was telling himself that or if he was assuring Zack everything was fine.

“Alright…” Zack still wasn’t sure, but if Cloud said he was alright with it then…

“If you’re worried about the people around hearing you, don’t worry about it. Whether you’re good or bad, people usually won’t think much about it. But, if you do feel yourself starting to get flustered, just focus on me, yeah?” Zack assures, giving Cloud a bright smile.

Cloud looks into Zack’s eyes. It’s almost as though something was drawing him in, closer and closer. Before his mind could even process what it was he was feeling, Zack clicks the start button and throws him one last assuring smile before focusing his attention onto the screen.

Zack’s starting his part already since the instrumentals were the first to kick in. Cloud can see the words slowly starting to fall onto the screen. He steadies his breath.

_In_

_Out_

_In_

_Out_

Following his last inhale, Cloud exhales the first word. His voice, shaky at first, but starts to remember. Remember how it felt to sing and breathe. His voice begins to open up and fills the area around them.

Zack felt it. Felt the trickle-up his spine as Cloud became more comfortable. His voice, it’s soft, but there’s a light grit in it; adds power. Zack feels his heart rate increasing. The way Cloud starts to sway back and forth to the rhythm. The way his face scrunches when he hits the higher notes. The way his voice almost breaks when his emotions pull up into his throat. So passionate…so vulnerable…

Suddenly Cloud turns toward Zack, meeting his eyes. He swears his heart stopped altogether…

A smile. A smile so wide appeared on Cloud’s face, filled with pure joy. All of it being projected towards him. His heart clenches and he couldn’t help the heat rising onto his face. He ducks down, focusing on the guitar. His smile creeping up.

_‘Seriously, I just wanna…’_

Pull him in.

The song mellows as it reaches its end. When the song stills, Cloud stares at his feet. Did this seriously all happen? He just sang…and it felt great. Felt better than ever…

His hands are shaking. He really can’t believe what happened… He’s suddenly startled by the light sounds of applauding. Cloud flips his head up and looks around him. Since when were these people here? Were they all listening to him? Did they…like it?

“Cloud!”

Zack threw his hands around him, pulling him into a tight hug, “Holy shit, that was amazing! Why didn’t you tell me you could sing like that?!”

Cloud didn’t say anything. He’s a bit surprised by how close Zack was right now…so warm. He fought the need to nuzzle into Zack’s chest.

Zack releases him suddenly, the adrenaline wearing off, “Shit…sorry. Might’ve been too much during a first date” he chuckles nervously.

Cloud covers his face with his bangs, hiding the blush appearing on his pale skin, “…It’s fine”

Zack smiles, gazing down at him, “Think today’s been plenty eventful. Not gonna lie I’m beat, think you’re ready to go home?”

Cloud nods his head. He notices a hand in front of him. He looks up at Zack.

“Is it alright? I mean you don’t have to…” Zack says. He sounds nervous…

A light chuckle leaves Cloud, “It’s…fine”. He grabs hold of Zack’s hand, their fingers intertwining in between each other’s. Zack leading him out of the arcade.

When they get back to the bike, Cloud is leaning up against it, Zack standing over him, their hands still intertwined.

“I hope you enjoyed yourself today…because I honestly had a great time,” Zack says breaking their silence. He honestly thought that Cloud also had a good time, but he just had to ask to make sure.

Cloud nods, his grip tightening on Zack’s hand for a second, “Me too…today was a lot of fun”

Zack bites his lower lip, “Do you think…you’d be down for a second date sometime?”.

He didn’t want this to be the last time. He wants to continue seeing Cloud. Continue to discover the different sides of him.

Cloud’s eyes widened, “You really wanna go on a second date…with me?”. Cloud honestly didn’t want this to be the last time either. However, he was just too nervous to ask.

Zack leans in a bit towards him, “I mean it when I say I had a good time, and there’s just so much more to you. I want…I want to continue seeing you if you’ll allow me to”. His grip tightens around Cloud’s hand.

He wasn’t sure when it happened, but Zack had gotten very close…dangerously close. If it had been anyone else, Cloud would have immediately pushed them off. But he felt oddly comfortable with Zack. Like this was all okay… Like this was all…right.

He too begins to lean in closer, lifting his head up towards Zack. The space between them continues to shorten…

That is until his phone buzzes in his pocket.

Frowning, Cloud pulls the phone out. It’s his supplier. He looks back up at Zack, letting go of his hand, “Sorry, but I need to answer this”

Zack hums, a hazy look in his eyes as he watches Cloud pick up the call.

Over the phone, the supplier explains how his shipment will come a day earlier (meaning tomorrow) since the shipment schedule was shifted.

Cloud hangs up the phone sighing. Shit, Tifa wouldn’t be there tomorrow to help him out. Dealing with the deliveries alone was a hassle. Not only that, but it also took him double the time to sort everything out on his own.

“Everything okay?” Zack asks tilting his head down towards Cloud.

“Delivery is coming earlier than expected. Tifa won’t be able to help me out,” Cloud lets out a sigh, “So I’m gonna have to do it by myself”

“Hmm, when’s the delivery?”

“Tomorrow”

Zack nods as if he’s come to conclusion, “Alright, how bout I help you out tomorrow?”

Cloud frowns, “Is that okay? I can’t exactly pay you very well”

Zack waves his hand, brushing off the idea, “You don’t have to pay me, I usually take on a bunch of odd jobs anyway. Besides, gives me an excuse to see you tomorrow”. He throws Cloud a flirtatious smirk.

He looks at Zack then quickly darts his attention to the ground. His face growing redder as he began to remember what they were about to do just a minute ago.

_‘Was I really about to kiss him? On the first date? Seriously, what’s gotten into me’_ he thinks to himself.

“I-It’s getting kinda late, don’t you think?” Cloud asks, trying to hide his embarrassment.

Zack chuckles, “Yeah, guess you’re right. What time should I be there tomorrow?”

“Around 10am. Shipment usually comes around at 10:30”

“Alright then!” Zack grabs onto his helmet and passes Cloud the other, “Time to head back yeah?”

Cloud nods and they both put on their helmets as Zack starts the bike. They ride back to Cloud’s apartment.

* * *

Cloud returns home, removing his shoes and placing them on the rack next to the front door. He drags himself into his room, plopping on the bed, the exhaustion finally settling in.

So much happened today.

He sang out in public… That was something he never imagined doing again, but performing with Zack. It was…nice. His heart flutters thinking about it.

He even almost kissed Zack…

Seriously though, what would’ve happened if he didn’t get that call right then and there?

He shifts onto his side, glancing over at the box in the corner of his room.

_‘I wonder…if I tried again, would everything work out this time?’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, first date is over! I'd say it was successful. Can I go on a good date too ;-; 
> 
> Anyway, we're slowly starting to get into Cloud's past. More so in the next chapter. But still easing into it, I wanna unwrap Cloud's past until I have to completely write it out lol   
> Hoping to have ch4 up in a few days. I have it drafted out just need to type it. I'll do my best but no promises ;)
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading! And as always I appreciate everyone's comments, always making my day (///u///)  
> Also feel free to follow me on twitter @thea_who


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We learn a bit more of Cloud's past. And Zack discovers something that leaves him questioning things...

Cloud stands in front of his store, doing the inventory check as the delivery man unloads the products. He had Zack sorting some of the goods he already checked in the store.

The man finishes unloading the last of the products and heads off.

Cloud picks up the last of the boxes and brings it into the store. He sees Zack sorting some of the items on the back wall. He’s tall so Cloud can see him over the aisles. He’s wearing a sleeveless shirt that put his biceps on display.

_‘Wonder what it’d be like to have those arms wrapped around me’_ Cloud thinks.

“Hey Cloud, where should I put this?” Zack asks, snapping Cloud out of his thoughts.

Zack’s holding some guitar straps.

Cloud guides him to the area where he kept the guitars and signaled where they were kept, which was hung on the wall with the guitars.

"You sleep well last night?" Zack asks as he arranges the straps by color. He didn't have to arrange them that way but seems like Zack really enjoyed doing it anyway.

Cloud hums, “Yeah…” That’s a lie. He couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that they almost kissed. Not only that, but he was genuinely disappointed that they didn’t. He wanted to know what it felt like. What it felt like to have Zack’s lips on his own. How warm it would be…

“That’s good. Honestly, I had some trouble sleeping last night…” Zack fiddles with the straps he’s hanging up, “I had some regrets from last night…”

Cloud turns his attention to Zack.

Regrets?

Did something go wrong? Did _he_ do something wrong?

Zack pauses for a few seconds as if gathering his thoughts, before turning to face Cloud, “I wish I actually kissed you last night”

Cloud looks into his violet-blue eyes. Something soft and dark lurking in them.

Cloud didn’t know what to say… he felt the same way, but he didn’t want to say that out loud.

“…I see”, Is all he manages to let out.

Zack scratches the back of his neck, “Ah sorry…I thought…maybe that was a bit much…”

_No._

Cloud didn’t want him to feel bad about it. There wasn't anything wrong with it if anything…

"I wanted to…" slips out of Cloud. His eyes widen noticing what he just said.

Zack gaped, “Wait you—"

“D-Do you have any shows coming up? I really wanna see you perform again” Cloud franticly interrupts.

Zack seems like he wants to continue to pry out Cloud’s thoughts, but he sighs and places his hands on his hips, “Yeah, we’ve got a show in a week on Friday”

“Same bar?”

“No, different bar. Never played at this one before, but the owner contacted us saying she really wanted us to perform. Apparently, she’s a fan. The bar’s also well known; I’ve tried to get in a few times but was never able to. Never would have imagined the _owner_ would be a fan.”

“That’s great! Opportunity to make new fans, right? What bar anyway?”

“Place called Seventh Heaven”

_Seventh_

_Heaven…._

_Wait what?_

The owner contacted him. So obviously it was Tifa.

She didn’t say anything…was she doing this on purpose? Seriously she’s always plotting something. Swears he can hear her giggling in his ear. Wait…Zack said next Friday…he’s supposed to help her that day.

Cloud lets out a sigh, _‘Seriously, I’m gonna have to talk to her later’_

“Something wrong?” Zack’s standing right near Cloud. Startles him.

“Y-Yeah. Sorry, got a little lost in my thoughts”

Zack hums, “Will you be there?”

“Probably” More like most certainly.

“Stand near the stage this time around? So, I can see you”

Cloud blushes, “We’ll see…” 

After sorting through most of the boxes, there are still a few left that needs to go back up to Cloud's place.

Cloud was going to take them up himself, but Zack had insisted that he help.

They had placed the boxes on a trolly, and they were currently pushing it up the hill, Zack pushing from the back, and Cloud pulling from the front.

They finally reach the elevator and Zack slumps against the wall, Cloud pushing the button to the 5th floor.

“Finally—” Zack breaths out, “Now _that_ was a workout. And you usually do this alone?". He really couldn't imagine Cloud doing this himself. Even for him, it's difficult.

Cloud shakes his head, "No, usually Tifa helps me out. And besides, there's actually more boxes today than there usually is".

Zack hums. That’s assuring. Sure, Cloud isn’t _weak_ , but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t worried about the possibility of Cloud breaking something trying to do this alone.

_Worried, huh?_

Cloud’s really been filling his mind lately…since their date last night.

The elevator opens and they step out, walking to the end of the hall and entering Cloud’s apartment.

Cloud removes his shoes and places them on the rack. Zack following his motions.

He takes a look around.

_‘So, this is where Cloud lives…so simple’_ he thinks to himself. Never really thought he’d find himself in Cloud’s apartment so soon. Although, he’s not here for _that_. Also, one other thing he notices after glancing around…

It’s tidy…something Zack’s apartment wasn’t.

He should probably fix that…

"You can place those boxes in the room. No need to unload them just set them in the corner" Cloud points over to the bedroom. He's already grabbing one box and walking over to the closet in the living room.

Zack nods and drags the rest of the boxes into the room as told.

It’s Cloud’s room…

It smells like him…

_Oh god…_

Zack shakes his head back and forth, trying to rid his mind of the pervasive thoughts trickling into his mind.

Zack glances around the room and spots a box already placed in a corner.

_‘Guess I’m supposed to place them here’_

He pushes the boxes up to the lone box. He looks at the contents of the box that was already there, expecting it to be more music supplies. However, that isn’t what it was.

It’s just paper, lots of it.

Curiosity seems to get the best of him, as he’s already sliding one of the sheets out of the box and scanning across it.

_‘This is…’_

Cloud is arranging some of the items they brought in the closet.

He starts thinking about how nice it is to have Zack around; and not just about him helping out today. Just having him around in general. Makes Cloud realize just how lonely he’s been…

“Cloud! Is this what I think it is??”

He turned around to find Zack holding onto a sheet a paper. He seems excited about it.

Cloud squints, his eyes widening when he comes to the realization.

“Did you write this??” Zack asks, a look of disbelief in his eyes.

Cloud’s heart starts to beat faster, and not in the warm _‘I have butterflies’_ feeling. This is the feeling he gets when he starts to get anxious, when his breathing loses its rhythm.

He needs to give Zack a response though. Cloud shyly nods his head, keeping his eyes on the floor.

_‘He’s going to ask me—ask if I can write him—’_

“That’s amazing! You think I can hear you perform these sometime?” Zack excitedly asks, interrupting his thoughts.

“What?” Cloud’s taken aback.

_‘He doesn’t want me to write a song for him?’_

“I wanna hear you sing these!” Zack smiles like it’s the most obvious thing ever.

“But why?” his mind’s still trying to catch up to what was happening.

“Why?” Zack places his hands on his hips, closing his eyes in thought, “Well, the lyrics, they seem sentimental. I have my own interpretation of how it may sound, but you’re the one who wrote it. I’d like to know the intended tone of it from the writer himself”.

Cloud blinks a few times, “Oh…”

_Tifa’s right…he’s different…_

Zack’s approaching him and stops when he’s in front of the blonde, “S-so what do you think? Can I?”

Cloud looks up at him, into his eyes. He’s serious.

“Maybe…”

Taking that as a positive answer, Zack beams. He rubs at the back of his neck nervously, “Hey?”

“Hm?” Cloud tilts his head. Was there something else?

“I noticed you had a whole box of songs…you mind if I look through them?”

Cloud stood there for a moment. He hadn't looked through his own songs in years, as most of them were based on his life experiences, his emotions, his ups, his downs… He had no intention of ever looking at them again. No intention of writing again… 

However, if that were the case, he probably would have burned the box or took it out of plain sight. So maybe, just maybe, he was subconsciously waiting for someone to reignite that flame within him.

He relaxes, his shoulders falling, “Alright…just let me finish putting these away”.

Cloud places the box of songs on his dining table. Zack takes a seat on one end and Cloud takes the seat to the right of him.

Cloud still couldn’t believe that he was about to look through his songs. It all seemed surreal. However, Zack. Zack looks like a kid on his birthday who just had the cake placed in front of him. So excited.

He let Zack rummage through the box, pulling out any songs he wanted a closer look at. Every now and then he’d ask Cloud for explanations on some of the metaphors or even about his inspirations for the songs. Cloud answers his questions to the best of his ability. Since some of the songs he asked about were fairly innocent. However, sometimes Zack would pull out a song sheet that meant a little more. Something he had wrote while he was in college.

The songs he wrote in college were…different. He was about 19-20 years, a completely different person compared to the one he is today. However, that wasn’t what these songs were about. During that time in his life, he had met someone who, at the time, seemed to be his savior. However, that man became his curse all so suddenly. Cloud’s dreams slipping through his fingers into the pool of regret and shame that rested beneath him.

He had tried his best to continue forward, but every time he picked up a pen and tried to write, he just couldn't do it. His mind drawing blanks, his inspiration and fire suddenly just gone. He tried and tried multiple times afterward, however, no progress was made. Eventually, he just gave up. Tired of trying. Tired of the disappointment he felt towards himself. Tired of the fact that that person who had seemingly taken everything from him was right…

Cloud notices Zack lingering on a sheet.

“See something?” Cloud asks.

“…Yeah. It’s just this song. I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before…” Zack tries recalling where exactly.

Cloud hovers over Zack, trying to see what it was he’s talking about.

His eyes widen when he notices. He quickly snatches the sheet from Zack’s hands. His breathing is starting to catch again. He needs to calm down but…

_This is…_

Noticing the change in Cloud’s behavior, Zack reaches towards him, “Cloud? …Are you feeling alright?”

No, he wasn’t okay. This song…this was the song that…

“I—I’m fine”, Cloud tries to convince himself, but he knew he wasn’t breathing right.

_In._

_Out._

_In._

_Out._

Zack glances down at the song sheet that was now in Cloud’s hands which were gripping so hard on the sheet, it was beginning to crumple. He then looks at Cloud’s face; something’s there, but Zack couldn’t exactly say what.

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to ease the tension that’s slowly filling the room, “S—Sorry. Didn’t mean to offend you or anything like that. It’s unlikely that I heard it somewhere, but it really did feel famil—”

“You’re just imaging things” Cloud stammers out. He quickly realizes the way he’s acting. Probably weirding Zack out from the sudden outburst.

He didn’t want Zack to think he’s weird…

“S—Sorry, are you hungry? Now that I think about it, we haven’t eaten all day” he asks, changing the subject to something lighter.

Zack blinks a few times, noticing Cloud changing the subject. He wanted to ask him what got him on edge, but maybe that wasn’t the best idea right now.

“…Actually, now that you mention it, I am pretty hungry. You wanna order take out?”

“If you want to? But I’ve got some ingredients here. I can make something really quick, not anything fancy.”

“Ooh, you can cook?” Zack leans onto the table resting his chin on the back of his hand.

“I can boil noodles and open a jar of sauce”

Zack chuckles, “Looks like we have the same cooking level”

A faint smile appears on Cloud's face. Good, Zack was worried he'd still be tense from earlier.

“So, you okay with spaghetti?” Cloud asks.

“I’ll eat anything you make” he winks.

Cloud groans, moving into the kitchen, “Alright, just give me a few minutes”

Cloud comes back with two plates of spaghetti, placing one in front of Zack. They eat without exchanging many words. Seems like they both have a habit of getting quiet while eating.

* * *

After they finished, Zack left Cloud’s apartment and heads over to the studio to meet up with the band for practice. They had more practice lined up for the week given that their next show was in a week.

When he meets up with Angeal and Vincent, they talk about possible songs to perform and what sort of tone they want to go with. Zack’s never been to Seventh Heaven, so he’s not too sure about what sort of vibe the bar has. Angeal recommends something more mellow. Agreeing on that, the three go through their song options and then narrow it down to three songs.

They practice the three songs and decide to wrap up there.

As they pack up their belongings, Zack asks, “Hey guys?”

The two turn their attention towards him.

“You know a song called Cry Out? Kinda goes like, _Cry out. Oh, I’m burning out. Can’t you hear the sound?_ ”

Vincent rubs at his chin, “Sounds familiar”

“…It’s one of Jenova’s most popular songs. Came out around 4 years ago” Angeal explains, almost bitterly.

“Jenova?” Zack tilts his head. Jenova’s one of the most popular bands over in Sector 6. “Are you sure it’s by them?”

Angeal nods, “It was written by their vocalist, Sephiroth”

_Sephiroth?_

That’s the guy Zack had replaced 4 years ago… Sephiroth used to be the vocalist of Crisis Core.

But wait.

If Sephiroth wrote it…why does Cloud have the song sheet? Not only that, but the handwriting on it was identical to all the other sheets he had…which meant Cloud wrote it…

But Angeal’s saying Sephiroth wrote it?

Zack sighs. This doesn’t make sense. He’s gonna have to ask Cloud about it sometime.

“Why are you asking that all of a sudden?” Angeal asks.

Zack lies, “Heard it on the way here. Couldn’t remember who the artist was”

Angeal hums, “Alright then. I’ll see you both on the night of the show. And Zack, please _try_ not to be late”

Zack gives him a thumbs up, “You can trust me”

Angeal lets out a sigh.

With that, they all go their separate ways.

* * *

On his way home, Zack gets lost in his own thoughts.

Zack felt the urge to just text Cloud earlier, but he realized that maybe that wasn’t the best idea, recalling the way the blonde had snatched the sheet out of his hands. Even his facial expression. There was something, something about that song that bothered him, but he wasn’t sure what exactly. He really wanted to ask right then and there, but he didn’t want to corner Cloud. And judging by the way he changed the subject; it was evident that Cloud didn’t want to talk about it.

Zack sighs. He knew Cloud had things going on, or just something that seemed to just haunt him. Zack didn’t want to pry, but it was always something he noticed. Something that he couldn’t help but worry about. He’s seen the way Cloud can smile, how much Cloud can just loosen up and have fun. However, he also saw the way Cloud would talk down on himself. The way he was sometimes hesitant about certain things. For example, when he had asked him out. That look of disbelief and uncertainty in the blonde’s eyes. Made him want to show Cloud that he was serious.

That's exactly what he's been trying to do, at least he hopes Cloud could tell he was being serious. He'd been trying to do his best to get Cloud to feel like he can relax around him. Zack felt great when he saw the way Cloud smiled at him when they were playing that game at the arcade. It was so soft, he really just wanted to see more of that smile.

He lets out another sigh.

_‘This is becoming much more than what I was expecting…’_

He’s not going to lie, he approached Cloud because he was cute, nothing more. However, the more he got to know Cloud, the more he wanted. There’s just so much more to Cloud, he couldn’t help but be pulled in.

He wanted to be closer to the blonde…

He sighs once again.

To think he’d fall this hard this quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! Late chapter today! Things should start to pick up from here! I've got a little treat for you guys next chapter ;) I've honestly been a little worried about the pacing being too slow... but hey, things are moving, a bit faster than I was expecting them to tbh  
> But anyway the song mentioned is Cry Out by one ok rock! 
> 
> Thank you all for reading! Ans see you guys next chapter! As always thank you for all the comments and kudos, I really appreciate it :)  
> Feel free to follow me on Twitter @thea_who


	5. Chapter 5

Zack had been texting Cloud nearly nonstop since he had helped out with the shop. Cloud was usually pretty slow with the replies but every now and then, Zack would get a quick reply, causing him to get excited. He loved talking with Cloud. Even if he seemed short sometimes. That didn't bother Zack though, just thought that maybe Cloud was being a little shy, since Zack had a habit of saying cringe-worthy things.

He had asked the blonde if he was going to be at the show tonight, but the only response he got was…

_I’ll see what I can do._

Like what was that supposed to mean? Zack just wanted to see Cloud after the show. Especially now that they’ve become closer. Maybe they can have an actual conversation this time about how Cloud enjoyed the show.

Zack hums to himself just thinking about it.

* * *

Tifa opens the back door of the bar, allowing the three boys to walk in. She didn't want them to come in through the front door because the moment she unlocks that front door, more people will come waltzing in despite the bar not being open yet. She honestly didn't understand it; the bar opens at 7 pm and it clearly wasn't time yet.

Angeal is the first to greet her, “Hello, thank you for inviting us to play tonight. Never thought we’d have the opportunity to play at such a well-known place”

Tifa waves her hand back and forth, “Oh please. I’m a huge fan. I’ve been wanting to invite you guys for the longest time. I’m Tifa by the way. Think I forgot to introduce myself when we first talked”

“Tifa?” Zack pokes his head from behind Angeal.

Angeal glances at Zack from around his shoulder, “You know her?”

“She’s Cloud’s friend,” he glances back over to her, “Didn’t know you owned _this_ bar. Cloud never mentioned it”

She giggles, “Probably because he didn’t want you stalking him 24/7”

Zack gapes, “First of all, I wouldn’t do that…not all the time at least… But second of all, is he here like all the time or something?”

She shakes her head, “No, but he helps me out sometimes. He’s actually helping me today”

Zack perks up, looking back and forth, trying to spot Cloud. Like a puppy searching for his owner.

“He’s not here right now. I sent him on some errands for me”

Zack pouts.

She really enjoyed all this. She knew Cloud and Zack had gotten closer, but to think he had Zack acting like _this_. So eager to just catch a glimpse of him. Zack even had a similar effect on Cloud. Just with the mention of his name, Cloud would turn some shade of red or quietly look around the room. Cloud always tried to hide it, but Tifa knew how to spot it.

It’s all so amusing. She purposefully invited them to play tonight. The night Cloud’s supposed to help her out. Figures he needs a little push.

"Alright, so the stage is there on the left. Feel free to get set up. I'll be over behind the bar wiping off the glasses" She waves and slips back to work.

Zack adjusts the mic, to the right height and places his guitar on a stand. Vincent tunes his base, and Angeal’s adjusting the drum set.

“I take it things are going alright with you and Cloud?” Angeal asks.

Zack smiles proudly, “Yeah, we had a date last week. Took him to that Wutaian place we go to”

"Didn't you guys to the arcade in Wall Market?" Vincent asks, lifting his head from his bass.

“Yeah. Wait, how do _you_ know that?”

“There was a video. Someone sent it to me asking if it was you in it”

“Video?” Did someone record him? He didn’t remember seeing anything like that. But he was so entranced by Cloud, he probably just didn’t notice.

“You were playing one those Rock Band games. Cloud was singing.”

“There’s a video of me and Cloud? Where?” Zack really wanted to see the video. He wanted to watch it repeatedly, reliving that moment.

“I’ll text the link to you later. Someone posted it on SNS.” Vincent goes back to tuning his bass.

“He’s quite good” Angeal adds.

“You saw the video?” Seems like everyone knew about this video, everyone but him.

"Vincent had shown it to me the other day…” Angeal seems to get lost in thought.

“Something bothering you?” Zack noticing Angeal furrowing his brows.

“It’s just…I swear I’ve heard that voice somewhere though”

“Hmm…” Zack rubs his chin, “Maybe it just sounds similar to someone else?”

“…Maybe”

Suddenly the back-door swings open.

“Finally found the things you asked for. Seriously these were impossible to find.”

Zack knew that voice, “Cloud?”. He looks around the corner, finding the blonde carrying some bags.

Cloud looks over at Zack who is just smiling at him. He’s always just smiling…

Cloud shyly waves over at him, “…Hey”

Before Zack can go over to Cloud, Tifa comes around and wraps an arm around the blonde’s shoulder, dragging him behind the bar counter.

"Thanks, Cloud! Now if you could help me out with these glasses, that'd be great!” She looks over her shoulder and peeks at Zack, sticking her tongue out.

Zack pouts once again. Seems like Tifa has found a new hobby in teasing Zack…

After they finish setting up 5 minutes before opening time. Zack makes his way over to Cloud.

"So, probably won't be able to stand near the stage huh?" Zack wanted to see Cloud close and upfront, but since he's here to help Tifa, it was unlikely he'd even be able to leave the bar.

“Mm, probably not, we’re expecting a large crowd tonight”

“This place isn’t huge, so I’ll still have a good view of you from the stage” he smirks.

Cloud really couldn’t get used to Zack’s flirting. He was always so open about it. Unlike Cloud who mostly liked to keep things private.

“Y—You want something to drink?” Cloud asks from across the bar counter.

“Hmm, give me your favorite drink. Kinda curious to see how you like your alcohol”

Cloud nods as he begins to mix the drink.

Zack watches the blonde work. He could tell Cloud wasn’t entirely used to mixing drinks. He’d fumble with the bottles every now and then. However, most of Cloud’s tips probably came from his appearance. Cloud’s uniform accentuated how slim Cloud was. The fitted white shirt, the black slacks, and the apron that was wrapped around his waist…

Zack just wanted to grip on that slim waist…

Cloud’s sliding him the drink.

Zack picks up the glass, inspecting it. Looks fruity. He gulps it down the drink in one go.

“…Sweet” is all he says.

“You don’t like that?” Cloud asks, a little worried. Sweet drinks weren’t for everyone.

“No, it’s good” he smiles, “Just didn’t know you had a sweet tooth”

Tifa’s unlocking the front door and flipping the sign to ‘Open’. Immediately, a crowd starts flooding into the bar.

Patrons start taking seats at the counter, and Cloud’s beginning to gather everyone’s orders.

Zack notices the way some of the patrons gaze at the blonde.

He didn’t like it. Sure, Cloud’s pretty, anyone can see that…but he didn’t want anyone else gazing at Cloud like _that_.

“Cloud” he calls out.

Cloud glances over at him. Some of the patrons also turn their heads towards him.

“Be sure to keep your eyes on me, yeah?”

Cloud blushes, averting his eyes. He just nods in response.

Zack smirks. He notices the way some of the patrons are glaring at him.

Good.

Zack then heads over to Angeal and Vincent.

After Zack leaves, Tifa nudges Cloud, “What was tha—t” she teases.

“Nothing…” he mutters.

“Mhm. Trust me, that wasn’t _nothing_ ”

Cloud rolls his eyes.

 _‘Seriously what’s he thinking’_ Cloud wonders, a faint spark lighting something in him.

Everyone in the bar is talking amongst themselves. Cloud’s washing some glasses and Tifa’s making drinks.

Suddenly a voice is calling out, grabbing everyone’s attention.

“Hey everyone!” Zack glances over in Cloud's direction and smiles, "We're Crisis Core! …Wow, it's really packed in here.” He didn’t notice it before, but now that he's on stage, he can see just how many people filled the bar.

“Hope everyone’s a little buzzed if not drunk already” he jokes, “We’ve got some mellow songs planned out for you guys tonight, get the mood going ya know? So, if you came with a date or you got someone on your mind, keep em close yeah?” He winks at Cloud from afar, “Best believe I also have someone on my mind”. The crowd hollers and the lights dim into a warm glow.

Cloud can see Zack throwing him looks from the stage. Zack’s always been forward, but tonight, Zack was being extra flirtatious. Not as though Cloud didn’t like it, he just didn’t know how to react to it most of the time. Sure, maybe he’s just thinking too much in _how_ to react, rather than just acting however he wants to react… He’s sure Zack would like that…

The music starts out soft, Angeal beating the drums lightly. The bass and guitar enter the song, adding more life to it while keeping its mellow tone. Their sound is different from the first time Cloud heard them. This was more…sensual.

Cloud keeps his promise, focusing on Zack. Zacks vocals enter in and Cloud is taken aback from just the sheer contrast it had from the first time he heard him sing. His voice still has that grit in it, but he’s purposefully being softer, not trying to go for something loud and powerful, but rather something lighter and intimate. Zack sings to the audience in the beginning, but eventually, he shifts his full attention towards Cloud. Cloud’s sure their eyes locked into each others.

Zack’s singing to him, not anyone else, _just him_. Cloud can’t see Zack’s expression clearly, but he can hear it through his voice. It’s like a mix of want, lust, and adoration.

Cloud feels his heart tighten and the heat rising on his cheeks. As the song continues, Cloud’s heat starts to spread lower, as Zack’s voice fills with raw emotion, as though he’s caressing Cloud. It almost feels like…

A confession.

His heart beats faster and faster as time goes on. This feeling, it’s too hot for him. When will the song end? Cloud isn’t sure he can hold out till the end.

He pours himself a hard drink, hoping it’ll mitigate some of the tingles moving down his body. However, the drink just made him burn hotter, a haze clouding over his mind. He couldn’t think straight. Especially with the way Zack’s singing to him… It’s like they’re the only ones here, as though the two of them are engaging in something intimately personal.

Cloud’s beginning to feel things and at this point, he just wanted relief…

If this is what Cloud thought it was, if Zack was doing what he thought he was, which was…confessing, maybe he’d be okay with it. Zack wouldn’t feel turned off if Cloud just… let go.

_Please, just end the song…_

The lights lift off the stage when they finish performing. The band walks off and Zack’s headed towards Cloud.

“Were you watching?” Zack knew very well Cloud was watching. If anything, it seemed like the blonde was watching very intently.

Zack’s face feels hot, but that was probably from the heated performance just now in combination with the area being a little stuffy from all the people.

He keeps his gaze on Cloud, waiting for an answer, but it seems like there isn’t one coming.

Zack tilts his head down trying to get a view of Cloud’s expression, “Cloud?”.

Ignoring Zack, Cloud turns towards Tifa, “T—Tifa…can I take a short break?” Cloud asks keeping his head down, his face glowing a light pink.

Tifa smirks, “Sure, just don’t forget you have to come back to help me clean-up”

Cloud nods and immediately makes his way closer to Zack, grabbing onto his forearm and pulling him out through the back door into the alleyway behind the building.

Cloud had Zack pinned against the wall, his hands gripping onto Zack’s shirt. Zack’s a little confused. Was Cloud mad about something? Did he do something wrong? He couldn't see the blonde's expression, which made him nervous. He had no intention of angering Cloud…

“Hey Cloud, what’s wron—mph” Zack’s eyes widened suddenly.

Cloud pushes a hard wet kiss on his lips. Cloud pulls back, keeping his face hidden behind his bangs.

Zack didn’t say anything. He just couldn’t get over what just happened.

Cloud kissed him??

Is he dreaming right now?

He must be dreaming…

But when Cloud looks up, Zack felt his heart stop. Cloud’s face is flushed, his brows furrowed like he couldn’t tell what he himself was doing.

“Seriously…if you sing to me like that…I’m bound to feel _something_ ” Cloud mutters so quietly. Zack barely hears it.

Zack gapes, “Cloud you—mph”.

Cloud pulls him into another kiss, but this time Zack kisses him back. He flips them over pushing Cloud against the wall. He breaks their kiss, their breaths mixing with each other’s. Zack rests his head on Cloud’s shoulder.

“Seriously Cloud…didn’t expect you to be so forward like this… shit seriously… I really…”

He kisses the blonde again, this time slipping in his tongue. He leans down and places his hands on the back of Cloud’s thighs, pulling them up so Cloud is elevated against the wall and at eye level with Zack.

Cloud moans, pushing further into the kiss. He wraps his legs around Zack’s waist, “ _Zack…”_

Zack jolts, pulling back and gazes at Cloud, “You okay?”

There’s so much pink blushed on Cloud’s face, “Mhm…I’m okay…”. He pulls Zack close, wrapping his arms around his neck.

Zack huffs out a chuckle. _'Seriously, there are so many different sides to him…no wonder I like him so much…’_

Zack's eyes widen.

Oh…

That hasn’t been said yet… and here they were, going at it behind the bar in an alleyway.

This isn't how Zack wanted to do things. He wants Cloud to understand how he feels. He doesn't want this to seem like a friends with benefits type of situation.

“Hey Cloud?”

“Hm?” Cloud’s nuzzled up against Zack’s neck.

“You think we can continue this later?”

Cloud pulls away from Zack’s neck, his eyes filling with uncertainty, “Y—You don’t want to?”

"No, oh gods no. Of course, I _want_ to. It’s just that…” Zack blushes, “There’s just something I want to tell you before we go into this…”

Cloud couldn't hide his nervousness. Maybe he had made the wrong move…but he knew he had to hear Zack out…maybe it wouldn't even be that bad.

Cloud nods, “Okay, but we gotta help out Tifa first”

Zack smiles letting Cloud’s feet fall back onto the ground, “Alright, not a problem! She’s probably wondering why you’re taking so long”

He blushes, “I’m…pretty sure she knows…”

“Wait what??”

Cloud’s already walking back into the bar.

* * *

The two of them finish helping Tifa clean up the bar. For the most part, it went smoothly. However, Tifa kept throwing the two knowing glances and would keep making suggestive remarks. Zack came to notice just how much she just enjoyed teasing not only him but Cloud even more so. Honestly, it was funny to see.

Cloud and Zack had walked over to a nearby park after leaving the bar. They took a seat on top of the slide, the moon, and the stars being the only things illuminating the area.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, allowing Zack to gather his thoughts. Cloud, on the other hand, became more nervous the longer the silence lasted.

“Why did you kiss me?” Zack asks, breaking the silence between them. By no means was he upset about the kiss, he just wants to know what made Cloud jump onto to him suddenly.

Cloud fiddles with his fingers, “I just thought…um, I mean—the way you were singing…”

“The way I was singing?”

Cloud nods, “It sounded like you were trying to…tell me something. Or I guess like…get something across”

Zack takes a moment to think about it. Had he made it that obvious? Sure, he was thinking about Cloud during that performance, but he didn't think the tone would have been that much different than that of a normal heartfelt performance.

“What do you think I was trying to say?”

Cloud blushes, “…a, c—confession…”

Zack blushes, groaning as he buries his face in his hands. Seriously he didn’t think he was being obvious. But seems like Cloud was easily able to pick up on it. Maybe that just shows how much his feelings had gotten out of hand; he just wasn’t able to keep them hidden any longer.

But wait…

That meant Cloud kissed him…thinking that he was confessing…

“Cloud…does that mean you like me to?” Zack asks, inching closer to Cloud.

Cloud squeezes his hands, “I mean, I don’t _dislike_ you”.

“Cloud, listen…” he rests a hand gently on Cloud’s thigh, causing the blonde to focus on him, their eyes meeting.

"This—uh, well…truth is…" Geez, why is he so nervous. Not like this is the first time he's confessed to someone, "I…I care about you a lot and…I want to date you properly. Like seriously date you, not just for fun…I wanna mean something more to you…”

“Like a boyfriend?” Cloud mutters.

“Yeah…”

Cloud averts his gaze away from Zack’s, “I—I don’t know…about that…”

“What makes you say that?” Zack noticed Cloud’s hesitation.

“Well…it’s just that…” Where does he begin, there was so much that scared him being in a committed relationship. “People can change for good or bad…and sometimes, that change ruins _everything_ …”

Zack doesn't ask about it, but it seems as though something may have happened before. Sure, people change all the time, that's just a part of growing older, but Zack…even if he were to change, he had no plans on just ditching the blonde.

“Cloud… listen.” He lightly raises Cloud’s head, wanting the blonde to see that he’s serious, “I don’t know what happened in the past, but that’s not what you should be focusing on. I understand that you may be scared about what’s to come in the future, but I just want you to know that… I like you. The more I spend time with you, the more that fact is etched into my mind. There's just so much to you; so much that keeps surprising me and causes me to fall for you all over again. I'm not going anywhere, and say if something were to happen, later on, I'm not just gonna leave you, what kind of man would that make me?"

Cloud clenches his fists in his lap. He knows Zack wouldn’t purposefully cause harm to him. Zack’s a good guy, he knows that. It’s just…

“…It’s not that I don’t want to…I’m _scared_ to go into a relationship, but I don’t want to be scared…I truly don’t want my fears to rule over me, but sometimes…sometimes I just can’t help it”

Zack would notice this every now and then, Cloud's hesitation. He knows Cloud's capable of breaking through all that, but if he needs a push Zack will be there for him.

“It’s not like I’m saying we have to dive right into it all now. I just… I wanna work towards something serious. If you need time, I’ll give you time, and if you ever feel scared about anything, you can talk to me. I’ll listen to everything and anything, and don’t you dare think that I’ll judge you for it. But I just wanted to let you know where I stand. I want you to understand that I want all of you, not like some sort of fuck buddy, but lovers… Do you trust me?”

Cloud started trusting Zack a while ago, he was just always so sincere… “Of course, I trust you”

“Then…are you okay, sticking this out with me?”

Cloud nods his head, “Yes…I want to… I want to get better… and I do want to be with you too.”

Zack reaches in, placing a soft kiss under Cloud’s jaw, “I’m sure we’ll get there”

Cloud releases a faint smile, “Yeah…”

* * *

The room is dark, the light from a cell phone creating a glow that bounced off the slitted-emerald eyes. Long silver hair draped off the couch.

The faint sound of singing can be heard coming out through the speakers of the phone.

The man smirks as his eyes narrow, “I’ve finally found you…Cloud…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, this chapter was kinda hard for me to write. I hope it came out okay and the confession didn't seem out of place or anything... how do people even confess???? How do people even start dating?????
> 
> Anyway thank you all for the kind comments and I'm glad some of you are enjoying the story! Really means a lot to me :)
> 
> Hope to see you all in the next chapter...that will hopefully go up on Cloud's birthday! Also next chapter will be nice and fun, then after that we diving head first into angst you guys!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: there is some light smut in this one :)

It’s been nearly a month since Cloud and Zack have been seeing each other more seriously. Were they boyfriends? It’s hard to say. They definitely became closer and Cloud has gotten more comfortable around Zack, not holding back his emotions as often. However, they haven’t done much aside from kissing… On a heavier note, he never found the opportunity to ask Cloud about Sephiroth, but it didn’t dwell on his mind too often. So, he decided to just let it go for now, maybe Cloud would tell him when the opportunity arises.

Sometimes after Cloud closed the shop for the day, he would join Zack at the studio and watch the band practice. He’d often give feedback on their practices, but he genuinely just enjoyed watching them.

Zack, on the other hand, would often help Cloud at the shop whenever possible. He liked the calming vibe of the place. Combine that with Cloud's presence, Zack was in heaven.

Today, he’s taking Cloud to meet Aerith. She kept on insisting to meet him, claiming Zack was hiding him from her. It’s not like he was deliberately hiding him, if anything, he thought Cloud and Aerith would get along great; but, he didn’t want to just introduce Cloud to all his friends suddenly when their relationship wasn’t even concretely defined.

“So, this Aerith…she’s a florist?” Cloud asks as they walk through the Sector 5 slums. Honestly, Cloud was curious about her, more so because she was known for her hybrids or just the flowers really. Flowers weren’t too common here in Midgar. Honestly felt like forever since Cloud has even seen one.

“Mhmm, one of the only ones in this sector!" Zack exclaims, "She has some pretty rare ones too. I really don't even know how she gets her hands on them"

The shop slowly starts to peek over the horizon line. As it becomes more visible, the details of the shop come into view. It’s a small shop, that had a welcoming sign placed on the top of the building. The front entrance was littered with a range of colorful flowers, brightened up the dull colors of the building itself. There seemed to be a path along the side that lead somewhere behind the building, maybe a garden?

A bell chimes as they walk through the front door. It was like walking into a forest. The smell of flowers fills the entire space. Flowers of different colors were potted along the walls and some were displayed in the center of the store. Ferns, ivy, and other greenery dangle from the ceiling. The large windows on both ends of the shop let in a fair amount of light for the plants.

“Yo, Aerith!” Zack calls out.

Cloud notices a pink ribbon appearing and disappearing between the plants.

Suddenly he’s met with bright emerald eyes. She ignores Zack and goes straight to Cloud.

“You must be Cloud!” her voice is bright and confident. “You know, Zack talks a lo-t about you” she giggles.

“Aerith…” Zack sighs, hiding his face in his hands.

Cloud sneakily huffs out a laugh, “It’s nice to meet you..uh…Aerith”

She grins at him. ‘ _Her smile is just as bright as Zack’s’_ he thinks to himself.

“Your voice is very soft” she notes. She then claps her hands together, “So what’s the plan”

“Plan?” Were they supposed to do something here? Cloud was just following Zack…

Zack scratches the back of his head, “I didn’t really have anything in mind…Maybe you can show him the garden out back? That okay with you, Cloud?”

Garden? Was there really a garden here? In Midgar? If there was, he’d love to see it.

Cloud nods his head and Aerith lights up, grabbing his arm and pulling him towards the side door, “You’re gonna love it! The flowers are blooming right now too!”

They follow the path down towards the back. The sound of water trickling fills their ears. There’s a stream running through the garden, it meets in the center, filling a large pond. Because the flowers are blooming, various shades of purple, yellow, white, and blue fill the area.

Cloud gazes around the garden, “Wow…” To think something like this actually exists here, “It’s beautiful”

She giggles, “Here, let me show you some of the flowers” She drags him into the garden, Zack trailing behind them. He seems to just be watching.

She stops at the bed of yellow daylilies, "These are some of my favorites. What do you think of them?"

Cloud crouches down, gently brushing his fingers along the petals of the flower, “They’re pretty…”

Aerith can't seem to contain her excitement, "You must really like flowers," she crouches down with him, "Here, I'll let you in on a secret okay? If you close your eyes and listen hard enough, you can hear the flowers whispering" She closes her own eyes and takes light breaths. She opens her eyes back up and leans against Cloud, “They really like you” she giggles.

Cloud blushes. Did the flowers really tell her that? He didn’t understand it entirely, but he tried doing as Aerith said. He closes his eyes and breathes lightly. He can’t hear anything concrete, but he feels a light buzzing, feels…comforting. He opens his eyes again and turns towards Aerith, “I couldn’t hear anything…but it felt…comfortable”

Aerith smiles, “That’s much better than when I tried to get Zack to do it. He’s too rough with them”

“Hey, I tried okay” Zack blurts out.

Aerith and Cloud both laugh in unison.

Seeing the two of them get along so effortlessly warmed Zack’s heart. Aerith’s a good friend. Although their relationship didn’t work out, he still treasured her. She’d always been there when he needed her. It typically took some time for Cloud to warm up to someone, but it all happened so quickly with Aerith. This also allowed him to see a different side of Cloud that he didn’t often see. A soft and relaxed Cloud. Not that Cloud was always tense, but there were still times when Cloud would get lost in his thoughts. Sometimes he wished Cloud would voice out those thoughts, but he also knew that Cloud was just introverted.

Cloud asks Aerith about the other flowers in the garden and how she gets them to be different colors. She’s more than happy to explain it all to Cloud. Not often she finds someone who seems to be just as interested in flowers as she is. Zack thought flowers were pretty, but he never had enough of an interest to ask any in-depth questions seriously.

Zack had taken a seat on the bench at the front of the shop. About an hour had passed and Aerith and Cloud are coming out of the front door. Zack turns his head towards them when he hears their voices.

“Cloud, it was so nice meeting you. Come by anytime if you wanna chat. Or whenever you wanna rant about Zack” she laughs.

Cloud offers her a rare smile, “Yeah…I’ll come by whenever I can.”

She moves her attention to Zack, “You’d better treat him right! If not, I think I’m gonna have to take him for myself” she teases.

Zack huffs out a laugh, “Yeah yeah, I got it” He gets up as Cloud walks over to him, “I’ll see you later Aerith”

Their relationship still wasn’t clear…

The two wave goodbye to Aerith as they leave the shop.

“You hungry?” Zack asks, glancing over at Cloud.

“A bit”

“Wanna grab some takeout and take it up to my place? I don’t live too far from here”

“Your place?” there’s a light tint of red on Cloud’s cheek.

_Cute._

“Yeah, that okay with you?”

Cloud nods, “That’s fine”

* * *

They opt for Italian and order one large lasagna to split between them. Zack then swings by the liquor store and buys a bottle of Moscato. Zack has always liked his pasta with wine. He had opted for the Moscato because he figured Cloud would prefer something on the sweeter side.

Zack lived in a two-story complex located a few minutes from both Aerith’s shop and the train station. His apartment was on the second floor. They walk up the metal stairs, the railings creaking as their weight shifts between steps. Zack’s unit is the first on the left once they got up the stairs. He rummages through his pockets searching for his keys.

He finally pulls out the lanyard that had his keys dangling at the end. He inserts the key and unlocks the door. They walk in and Zack turns on the lights then removes his shoes and kicks them to the side. Cloud gently places his near the door.

Cloud looks around the apartment. It wasn’t large, if anything it probably was about the same size as his own. The living area in the center of the room had a leather couch that had a coffee table placed in front of it. A moderately sized tv was mounted on the wall in front of the couch. Zack had his guitar propped up in the corner, a pair of headphones, and some pieces of paper scattered around it. Most likely where he wrote his melodies. The kitchen was to the left of the living area and the bathroom and bedroom were to the right.

Zack places the food in the kitchen, removing the lasagna from the plastic bag. He grabs two plates and slices the lasagna in half, handing one over to Cloud. He then pours them both a glass of wine. Zack pulls up two chairs and they eat on the kitchen island.

“Kinda glad I cleaned up a while back” Zack chuckles, “After I went by your place the first time, made me realize just how much of a mess my place was in”

“It probably wasn’t _that_ bad," Cloud says taking a bite out of his food.

“Oh, trust me, it was bad. I’m usually only home to sleep. But, I do work on some music here sometimes, but I don’t usually put things away. So, over time, everything just piles up.” Zack picks at his food, “But I am working on it. I mean there are still a few things laying around, but I do _try_ to put some things away”

“I think it’s okay. Feels much homier here…”

Zack did notice the first time he went to Cloud’s place. There weren't many decorations, like nothing really personal laying around. Cloud had the needed furniture and the place was clean, but it felt kind of cold. Well, except for Cloud’s room. Zack still remembers the way it smelled, almost like fresh linen. Zack thinks back to Cloud looking over the flowers with Aerith. Maybe he could get him a plant to liven up the place. He never would have imagined Cloud liking flowers very much…

They finish eating their food and Zack’s pouring them both another glass of wine.

“You wanna watch something?” Zack asks, the couch would be much more comfortable than the stools they were sitting on.

Cloud nods, already making his way to the couch. He plops down onto it, sinking into the cushions. He looks comfortable.

Zack sits next to him and reaches for the remote, “What you wanna watch?”

“Whatever is fine” Cloud’s taking a sip of his wine.

Zack ends up putting on some corny action movie, the story wasn’t very interesting, if anything, it seemed like a comedy.

Cloud rests his head on Zack’s shoulder, “I remember you saying that you used to do street performances?”

Cloud rarely initiated conversations, but Zack was always pleased whenever he did, it assured him that Cloud was still thinking about him despite him not talking very often.

"Yeah, was in college during those times. Had to make a living somehow. There were even some people who showed up every week just to see me" Zack smiles thinking back on those times.

“Hmm…you went to college for music?”

“Yeah… my professors didn’t like me too much, but I got along pretty well with my classmates”

“The teachers didn’t like you?” Cloud couldn’t imagine anyone _disliking_ Zack. Zack was so animated and outgoing. Figures he’s the type of person who can get along with anyone.

“Yeah. It was mostly cuz I was into rock and not like classical or something more…sophisticated, I guess. Made graduating harder than it should’ve been. They were always giving me a hard time” Zack really hated his teachers for that. It wasn’t as though classical was the _only_ genre of music. He didn’t dislike classical or anything like that, but he wanted to pursue a career in rock, something his professors didn’t understand.

Cloud laughs, “At least you graduated, I never finished my degree”

Cloud must’ve been relaxed right now; he never talks about himself.

Zack lifts his hand and gently strokes Cloud’s hair, “Why didn’t you finish it?”

“…Some things came up. I just lost the motivation for it. I remember my professors being disappointed when they found out I wanted to quit…they tried convincing me not to…but I just couldn’t do it anymore”

“What about your friends? I’m sure they didn’t want you to quit” Zack’s sure if he wanted to quit school, his friends would’ve done all they can to get him to stay.

“…I wasn’t really _close_ to anyone there. I had Tifa, but she went to a different college”

“Ah…” Zack knew Cloud was closed off, but he didn’t expect him to not have any friends at all. Wasn’t that kind of…sad? Didn’t it get lonely? He wishes he were there, with the younger Cloud…to help him get through it.

“It’s okay. I didn’t mind being alone. I was more of an observer for the most part anyway.”

“Hm…is that how you wrote music? By observing?”

“That was part of it. They were usually a mix of my observations and my own experiences”

Zack thinks this may be a thorny path to tread down, but he wanted to know more…

“Did you like writing music?” Zack brushes his thumb gently on Cloud’s waist.

“…I loved it” A distance look filling his eyes.

“…Then…why’d you stop?”

Zack felt Cloud shift at the question. He didn’t force him to answer, just waited.

“I—I just couldn’t do it anymore. Whenever I tried…I just felt like I was doing something wrong”

Zack knew there was more to that. Something must’ve happened, _someone_ must’ve said _something_ to him… Zack’s read the songs Cloud’s written, and they’re beautiful, unlike any song he’s ever heard. However, Zack didn’t ask further. Just kept brushing against Cloud’s waist.

“…But…I _want_ to write again” Cloud says looking up towards Zack with determined eyes.

He pulls from Zack’s grasp for a moment before placing himself over Zack’s lap, his hands resting on his shoulders.

Once again, Zack’s at a loss of words. Cloud hasn’t done anything like this since the night they kissed for the first time.

“C—Cloud?” Zack asks, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Bright blue eyes are gazing at him. This time, there was no trace of uncertainty. Instead, there was confidence. Cloud was determined…

“ _Zack…_ ” Cloud calls out, leaning his face closer to Zack’s; Cloud’s breathe tickling against his ears.

Cloud pulls him into an embrace, “Ask me again…” He places a light kiss on Zack’s scar.

“Ask you what again?” Zack wasn’t sure what Cloud wanted him to ask. Was this about what they just talked about? Or was it something else?

Cloud keeps his head nuzzled up against Zack’s neck, “You know… the thing you asked me _that_ night…”

Zack’s brows furrowed, trying to pinpoint what exactly Cloud was talking about.

He couldn’t think of anything.

“Cloud, I—I really don’t know what you’re talking about” His hands wander onto Cloud’s back, wanting to slip his hands underneath the blonde’s shirt.

He could feel the heat from Cloud’s face against his neck.

“Zack, I—” he fumbles with his words, trying his best to phrase it coherently. He brushes his nose against Zack’s neck and softly whispers into his ear, trying to hide his embarrassment, “I want to… mean something more to you…”

Zack’s eyes widen, “Wait wait wait—Cloud, you—do you mean…” he pushes Cloud back and gets a good look at him. He wasn’t hiding behind his bangs this time, despite him _looking_ like he wanted to hide oh so badly.

“Cloud, are you sure?”

He nods his head, keeping his gaze on Zack’s eyes, “I’m sure…so _please_ …ask me again…”

Zack takes a deep breath, composing himself, “…Cloud, would you please…date me seriously?”

 _‘Ah…why is this so embarrassing…’_ Zack thinks to himself. However, he still loved every moment of this.

A smile lifts across Cloud’s face, “Like a boyfriend?”

 _‘Seriously, he’s so fucking cute’_ Zack thinks, his smile brightening his face, "Yes, like a boyfriend"

Immediately, Cloud’s face lights up. Zack stares in awe. He hasn’t seen Cloud smile like _this_ since their time at the arcade.

Unable to control himself any longer, Zack leans into Cloud and places a wet kiss on his lips.

Cloud stiffens when he thinks he’ll fall back off the couch and onto the floor.

Zack keeps a steady hold on Cloud’s lower back, pulling him close, “It’s alright, I got you” he gently says.

Cloud blushes, pursing his lips.

Zack leans back into Cloud, his forehead brushing against the blonde bangs, “You okay with this?”

Cloud doesn’t answer him, rather, he kisses Zack, pinning him back against the couch. Cloud rocks his hips against Zack, craving a closer touch.

Zack groans as he pushes his hands underneath Cloud’s shirt, rubbing down his back. Zack slips his tongue into the kiss, searching for Cloud’s. He pulls Cloud in closer, wanting to feel his heat.

Cloud moans into their kiss, “ _Z—ah—ck,_ ”

Zack smirks, pulling out of the kiss, “How bout we move this somewhere else…”

Before Cloud can say anything, Zack gets up from the couch, keeping Cloud in his arms. He carries the blonde to the bedroom and gently lays him down on the bed.

Cloud spreads his legs so that Zack’s able to climb on top of him.

Zack looks Cloud from head to toe, debating on where to start. He pulls Cloud’s shirt up, exposing his chest. He sweeps his hands up Cloud’s chest, his thumbs brushing against his nipples.

Zack pulls Cloud back into a kiss when he moans. He can feel Cloud’s hands shuffling below him, searching for his zipper.

Zack chuckles, “Someone’s in a rush”

“S—shut up…” Cloud blushes, turning his head to the side.

Zack moves lower down Cloud’s body, his hands resting along the waistline of the blonde’s pants.

“You mind?”

Cloud shakes his head, his hands hover over his mouth as his heart skips at the realization of what Zack had in mind.

Zack pulls him out and leans down onto him. Cloud shivers when he feels Zack’s breathe against him.

Zack doesn’t immediately wrap his mouth around him, instead, he moves his mouth down to the base, working his way up, his tongue creating slip.

He sucks on the tip before sliding Cloud into his mouth.

Cloud arches his back, clinging onto the sheets below him, “ _Z—Zack_ ” he moans.

Cloud can feel Zack huff out a laugh.

Zack continues to slide him in and out of his mouth, running his tongue along Cloud at the same time.

Cloud bucks his hips, his hand sliding into Zack’s hair.

Zack pushes down Cloud’s hips back to the bed, holding him firmly. He continues to suck him off, using one hand to cover the areas his mouth didn’t fill.

Cloud’s legs begin to shake and his grip on Zack’s hair tightens, “Z—ack, I—I think I’m gonna—” Cloud feels the wave of pleasure pulse through his body, he tries to rock his hips to ease some of the tension. However, Zack kept him steady against the bed. He shutters violently, but nothing follows… Zack had taken him out of his mouth.

Panting, Cloud looks up at Zack who is hovering above him, “D’you like that?” Zack asks, seemingly content with himself.

“Why’d you stop?” Cloud whines. He was so close.

Zack chuckles, “Don’t worry, I’ve got something else in mind”

Zack unzips his zipper. He sighs from the relief of pressure when he pulls himself out.

Cloud couldn’t help but stare. Zack's huge. Not the longest in length, but he was thick. Not only that, but precum was also dripping off him.

 _‘Is he feeling it that much from just sucking me off?’_ Cloud blushes at the thought. He seems to be doing a lot of blushing today…

“Here, give me your hand” Zack reaches for Cloud’s hand, placing it around them both. Zack grips around them and motions Cloud’s hand to move with his.

Oh…

This is…

Cloud winces at the stimulation. Zack’s hard length against his own, seeping over his own, the grip of both their hands pushing him further. It’s all going to Cloud’s head. Seems to be having the same effect on Zack when he gazes at him.

Their breathing becomes more ragged, Zack’s leaning into another kiss. This one being messier as they unravel into each other.

Zack groans through their kiss.

“Zack—I’m really gonna—”

Zack breaks their kiss for a moment, "M—me too" He kisses Cloud eagerly, swallowing his moans as Cloud's body trembled against his.

Zack places a wet kiss on Cloud's neck as he finishes alongside Cloud, feeling their warmth on his hands as it leaks down onto Cloud.

Zack slumps down next to Cloud, catching his breath. He throws a tired grin at Cloud, who is also steadying his own breath.

“You okay?” he asks, gazing at Cloud. He’s still trying to comprehend what just happened.

“Mmm…” Cloud couldn’t seem to gather his thoughts correctly. Still locked into a haze.

Zack chuckles, “I’ll clean you off” he gets up from the bed and heads into the bathroom. He comes back with a washcloth and begins to wipe the residue off Cloud.

Cloud shifts, “It…tickles”

Zack places a kiss on the bridge of Cloud’s nose, “I’m almost done, just bear with it a little longer”

After he finishes cleaning off Cloud, Zack pulls him up to his chest, throwing his arms around Cloud.

“You wanna just stay the night?”

Cloud huffs out a laugh, “Don’t think there’s any way I’m getting home like this anyway”

Zack chuckles, “That’s true…Oh—” he almost forgot.

“There was something I wanted to ask you”

Cloud hums as he squirms closer to Zack, “What’s that?”

“There’s this big show happening in a few weeks. Only the most popular bands in the city are invited to play there. We were invited. Thought I’d invite you also. You can bring Tifa too; Aerith’ll be coming as well.”

“You’re playing? That’s like a big deal isn’t it?”

“Mhm. Our first time was last year. Like when I say the event is huge, I seriously mean it’s _huge_. And the bands that play are crazy good. It’s also just a good time overall… And after I finish playing, I can hang out with you.” He rests his head on Cloud’s.

“Sounds like fun…I’ll ask Tifa if she can make it…” he says closing his eyes, listening to Zack’s heartbeat. He’s feeling tired.

“Sleepy?” Zack asks, glancing over at the blonde.

“Mhm…”

“You have to be up a certain time?”

“Have to open the shop at 11…”

Zack brushes Cloud’s skin, “I’ll wake you up before then…get some rest Cloudy” Zack places a kiss on his forehead.

Cloud didn’t seem to catch the nickname before he dozes off into a deep sleep.

_This warmth…I never want to lose it…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh look at that it's Cloud's birthday! So happy chapter today! 
> 
> I haven't written smut in agesssss, is this even smut...honestly I think it's pretty light lol But ya here you all go haha
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! And as always I appreciate the kudos and comments! I try my best to reply to most of the comments, but sometimes I don't really know what to say to you guys (///u///) 
> 
> But anyway I'll see you all next chapter! Next time chapter will introduce the angst so............be prepared lol  
> Also I'm on twitter @thea_who if anyone just wanna come by and say hi lol


	7. Chapter 7

Zack’s laying on his couch with his arm hanging off it, staring at the ceiling.

Tonight’s the night of the big event and Cloud had insisted on picking him up.

Zack even got ready in time. Cloud said if he wasn’t ready by the time he got here, he’d leave him behind.

Zack glances over at the time on his phone. Cloud should be here in a few minutes. When he placed his phone down on his chest, it starts to vibrate.

Zack sits up and answers his phone,

“ _Cloud?”_

_"I'm walking up the steps right now,"_ Cloud says. Zack can hear the creaking through the phone.

_“Okay, I’ll be right out!”_

_“Zack,”_ Before he was about to hang up, Cloud calls his name, _“Bring your helmet”_

Zack hangs up the phone and pushes it into his back pocket. _Bring my helmet?_ Did Cloud have a bike? Excited, he pulls his helmet out of the closet. He then picks up his guitar that was leaning against the wall and slings it over his back. He knew Cloud liked to be punctual, so Zack gathered his things as fast as he could, then double-checked to see if he had everything. 

He opens the front door and Cloud is leaning back on the railings with his arms crossed. He’s gazing out into the horizon.

Zack takes a moment to check out his boyfriend. Cloud’s wearing a grey oversized frayed sweater, the sleeves falling to his knuckles. The sweater also showed off his collar bones. Maybe it was weird, but Cloud seriously had pretty collar bones; Zack would love to leave marks there, against his pale skin… Cloud also wore ripped black skinny jeans that hugged every part of his legs. Seriously, Cloud even had nice legs… And his necklace, Cloud was wearing that black tied choker that Zack loved so much. Seriously, this was his boyfriend…

“Ready?” Zack asks as he locks the door and approaches Cloud, placing a kiss on his cheek.

“Mhm, you got everything?” Cloud gently grazes Zack’s waist.

Zack loves it when Cloud sneaks in touches, “Yeah, even got the helmet. We going for a ride or something?”

Cloud smirks, “Yeah, finally got my bike back. It was in the shop for a while”

They make their way back down the steps and towards the parking lot, “I didn’t know you were into bikes. You should’ve told me when I first took you on mine”

“Sorry, didn’t think it was _that_ important at the time” Cloud walks towards a bike that was parked away from the other cars.

“Holy shit…” Zack stares at the bike, “This is your bike??”

Cloud smiles proudly, “Yes, Fenrir is what I call her”

Zack walks circles around the bike, taking in every single detail. It’s sleek, probably one of the most beautiful bikes he’s ever seen. It had a glossy black paint job and the metal that wrapped around it was polished, the silver shimmering against the light. Anyone could tell this bike was kept in pristine condition.

“Zack…we’re gonna be late” Cloud mentions, snapping Zack out of his daze.

“Shit, you’re right. I just got caught up…”

Cloud chuckles, “That’s alright, but you know, it’s much better to ride” Cloud’s climbing onto the bike slipping on a pair of goggles.

“You’re not gonna wear a helmet” Zack points out while slipping the helmet over his head, climbing on the bike behind Cloud.

“Yeah. Don’t worry though. I’m pretty good at riding”

Zack huffs out a laugh and leans into Cloud, wrapping his arms around the blonde’s slim waist, “Is that so?” There’s a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Zack…what are you thinking," Clouds asks, looking over his shoulder.

He chuckles, “Nothing, nothing. We good to go?”

Cloud sighs, a faint pink rising to his ears. He starts the bike and the engine roars. Zack can feel the power beneath him. The bikes loud, but it’s a good kind of loud.

“Just a warning,” Cloud begins, “I drive fast, so hold on tight”, he revs the engine.

“Say no more” Zack nuzzles into Cloud’s back and tightens his grasp around the man’s waist.

Cloud pulls out of the lot and speeds his way onto the highway.

Zack’s heart rushes as Cloud’s throttling faster and faster, narrowly passing cars on the highway. Cloud was right though; he was _very_ good at driving; knew exactly what he was doing. Makes Zack wonder how Cloud truly felt about his mediocre driving skills. Zack did say he liked to drive fast, but Cloud…Cloud's driving so fast that their surroundings are just a blur of motion. 

The event is located on top of the plate. Cloud got them there much faster than if they were to take the train up.

There's a lot of people huddled in the parking lot. Cloud carefully drives around them looking for a place to park. The crowd glances at them as Cloud drives through. If anything, it was probably hard to ignore them given how loud Cloud's bike was, not only that, Cloud was just so pretty. A pretty boy on a pretty bike truly was a sight to see.

The bike comes to a stop and Cloud shuts off the engine. Zack’s the first to climb off the bike and remove his helmet. Cloud slides of his goggles and gracefully removes himself from the bike.

_‘Seriously…can’t believe this is my boyfriend’,_ Zack thinks as he watches Cloud come off the bike.

Cloud straps the helmet to the bike then looks around at the crowd. If the lot was _this_ packed, he wondered how crowded it would be inside. He typically didn’t like crowded places, always felt eyes on him, but being here with Zack makes him feel more at ease.

“Cloud!” Someone’s calling out for him from the crowd. Cloud tries searching for who, but she suddenly squeezes her way out of the crowd.

“Tifa” Cloud says, waving at her.

She's wearing a black mini dress that hugs the shape of her body, black fishnet stocking, and a pair of black converse. She's also wearing more makeup than she usually does, a maroon-colored smokey eye is colored on her and she's wearing red lipstick.

“Hey Tifa, long time no see!” Zack waves as she approaches the two.

She grins at them both, “Yeah! Cloud told me you guys have officially started dating”

Zack darts his head towards Cloud, “You really told her?”

Cloud blushes, “I wanted to tell _someone_ ”

Zack grins and pulls Cloud into him, “Aw Clo-ud”

“Alright, alright. You boys cut it out” Tifa teases. “We ready to go in?”

“Oh wait! Gotta find Aerith first” Zack mentions, looking over the crowd trying to spot her.

“Aerith?” Tifa asks.

“She’s a friend of Zack’s,” Cloud explains, “I met her not too long ago…I think you’ll like her”

Zack’s phone starts buzzing in his pocket. He pulls it out and answers, “Aerith, where are you…huh? Where? …You’re making your way? …Alright, alright, see you soon”

Soon after Zack hangs up, Aerith’s happily making her way to them, “Clo-ud! Za-ck!”

The widest smile is spread across her face as she runs up to them. She's wearing a white sundress that has a slit running up to her thigh. When she walks, the black garter she's wearing on her exposed leg is visible. She immediately runs up to Cloud and grabs hold of his arm.

“Cloud, how are you? I saw you ride in on that bike. Think you’re cool huh?” Since their first meeting, Aerith’s grown to like Cloud more and more. She basically ignored Zack whenever he brought Cloud with him.

“Aerith…” Zack tiredly huffs, “I’m here too”

“I know, I know, don’t get so upset” she teases. Her eyes widen when she notices Tifa, “Who’s this?”

Cloud glances over at Tifa, “This is Tifa, she’s a good friend of mine”

“Oh…” Aerith approaches her and leans in, “I’m Aerith, it’s nice to meet you” she smiles.

Tifa blushes. Aerith, she’s very pretty and smells like flowers, makes her nervous, “It’s…nice to meet you too”

Cloud tilts his head, confused by the awkward response from Tifa. She’s not usually all that shy.

“Tifa?” He asks out of concern.

She roughly nudges his waist and glares at him.

Cloud winces, _‘What the hell? What’d I even do?’_

“Guys” Zack is pulling all three of their attention, “I’ve gotta meet up with Angeal and Vincent. I’ll see you guys after we finish performing?”

“Alright, we’ll see you later. Good luck up there!” Aerith winks.

Zack comes up to Cloud and places a kiss on his cheek, “Enjoy the show okay? I’ll see you right after I’m done” He gives Cloud one last squeeze before heading into the building.

Once Zack is gone, both Tifa and Aerith feel the need to tease Cloud, but Cloud interrupts them before they’re able to say anything.

“Don’t even. Let’s just head inside okay?”

The girls giggle amongst themselves before following Cloud into the building.

This inside is packed just as much as it was outside, if anything, there were more people inside. The area’s built like a stadium, with the stage at the center of it all. There were various bars situated along the edges near the stairs to the upper floors, and more placed near the floor seats. Anyone could tell that being able to perform here was a big deal. Not just _anyone_ can perform here. Zack had said only the most popular bands were invited to perform. So, the fact that Zack would be here performing, Cloud couldn’t help but feel proud of his boyfriend. However, he was also curious about the other bands that would be playing tonight.

"Cloud! I think there is a good spot" Tifa calls out to him. She had picked a high table on the floor of the stadium near one of the bars. It was close enough to the stage, but far enough that there wouldn't be anyone constantly bumping into them.

Cloud hums in agreement. He still had a good view of the stage since the table was elevated.

"I'll buy you guys some drinks," Cloud says as the girls take their seats.

"Aw, what a gentleman~" Aerith teases.

“Yeah, yeah…what would you both like?” Cloud says rolling his eyes.

“Something hard” both girls speak up at the same time. They turned their heads towards each other and laughed.

Cloud sighs, “Well I guess it’s good you both have the same tastes”

He heads over to the bar, ordering three drinks. He got Tifa and Aerith the same drink and opted for a lighter one for himself. He just wanted a mild buzz, didn’t feel like getting drunk.

He returns to the table handing over the drinks to Aerith and Tifa. He hops onto his seat and places his chin in his palm, leaning against the table with his legs crossed. He just stares into the crowd not saying anything.

“So,” Tifa begins, “What’s it like dating Zack?”

Cloud turns to her. Were they really going to do this now…?

"It's…nice, I suppose. He’s a lot of fun” he suppresses the blush rising on his skin.

“Have you guys _done_ _anything_?” Aerith adds, leaning into the table. Guess he now has two girls in his life who enjoy teasing him.

“Ah…” Cloud blushes at the question, not knowing what to say. There was that night when they officially started dating…but after that, Zack became busy with practice for this performance. So, Cloud didn’t have the opportunity to see him much.

Tifa chuckles, “He treats you well though, right?” There was a glint of worry in her eyes.

Tifa, she’s known him for years, ever since they were kids. After an accident had happened during his teenage years, he moved in with her family. He stayed with them until he entered college, deciding it was time for him to move out. Tifa had moved out the same time he did. However, they both enrolled in different colleges. She's first handedly seen so much happen to him. She's probably the only one who actually knew about all that happened to him in college. 

Tifa… if she wasn’t there for him then, he probably wouldn’t be here... _at all_. Cloud winces at the thought. Seriously, those times were so hard for him. His mind struggled to keep itself together at that time. Constantly felt like everything was falling apart.

Cloud gives her an assuring smile, “Don’t worry, he treats me well… Probably better than anyone else ever has…”

Tifa sighs in relief, “Good, you deserve it, but—” Tifa’s face stiffens, “If he ever does anything to hurt you, best believe I’ll make sure he never does it again” Her fist clenches.

“Me too!” Aerith excitedly adds, “Zack’s cool and all, but if he ever upsets you, I’ll talk some sense into him!” Cloud finds it funny how easy it’d be for Aerith to just take his side. If anything _did_ happen, Zack would be in a lot of trouble.

Cloud chuckles. He really has some great people in his life now.

“Don’t worry. Zack’s a good guy” And he truly believes that. He’s not trying to convince himself that Zack’s good. He _knows_.

The girls giggle, “We know, just wanna make sure you know that we’re here for you” Tifa smiles warmly at him.

The show had already begun, and various bands were taking the stage one at a time. Each harboring a different style. Cloud loved the variety between each band. He had always found it boring to just stick with one style or genre. There was so much to learn from all types of music, each having their quirks. Cloud had learned to utilize that to his advantage in writing music. His professors always praised him…

Lately, he’s been thinking about his music writing days. Not much in a spiteful or depressing sort of way, but rather, he felt as though he longed for those days. He wanted to write something, but when he’d sit at his desk with the blank sheet in front of him, he’d freeze. Something pulling him back. His fear trickling up to his head whenever he held onto his pencil, the blank piece of paper staring into him.

He knew it would take time to get back into things, so he tried not to beat himself over it. He had Tifa, Aerith…and Zack.

Zack…he was always so good to him, complimenting him on things Cloud used to hate about himself. He's truly thankful for Zack. Wonders if he wasn't so persistent about dating him in the beginning, or being patient with him, would he and Zack even be together today? He really couldn't believe that there was a time where Cloud thought that Zack would be like _him_.

Cloud shakes his head at the thought, _‘How wrong I was’_

There was a band called AVALANCHE that was finishing up. Cloud was surprised by their lead singer. She was a petite woman, brunette hair, high ponytail. He would’ve never imagined her to have such a powerful voice. Combine that with the echo of the stadium, it sent shivers down his spine. It was completely different from her spoken voice. The way she screamed, her vocal cords thinning as she prolonged the note. It was remarkable.

The crowd cheers as the band heads of the stage. Fans can be heard cheering at their favorite members.

“Jessie! We love you!!” a group of guys yell out.

“Kyaa--! Biggs!!” a circle of girls were seen fangirling as he walks off the stage.

“Wedge!! Barret!! You guys are awesome!!” Wedge and Barret both waved at their fans, causing them to lose it even further.

Cloud chuckles to himself, fan chants were always so amusing.

The announcer gets back on the stage hushing the crowd.

“You guys enjoying yourselves!”

The crowd cheers in response.

"Good, good! We're approaching the end, unfortunately. We've got two more bands lined up to perform! Now this next band, I know you guys are gonna enjoy it! They're one of the most requested bands based out in Sector 5! Please give a round of applause for, Crisis Core!"

The crowd goes crazy, some of them waving rags into the air and pumping their fists. Some girls can be heard calling for Zack. Cloud wasn’t too fond of that, but what was he supposed to do about it.

The band walks onto the stage and takes their places. Zack grips onto the mic. The lights stay dimmed, just a faint glow of red.

“Are you all ready—!!” Zack yells into the mic.

The crowd yells. Cloud leans into the table, anticipating the performance. He felt his heart racing. Every time Zack took the stage, his heart was a beating mess.

Zack plays a chord on his guitar, “I said, are you guys ready—!!” Cloud’s never seen him this excited for a performance.

The crowd cheers even louder, it rings in Cloud’s ears. This performance, Cloud can tell it’s bigger than any of the other performances he’s heard from them. There’s more production put into this. It’s…exciting.

A hush falls upon the crowd, waiting for the band to begin. Suddenly, fog starts to seep onto the stage, yellow and red reflecting off it. White laser lights are pointed up towards the ceiling and move down towards the crowd when the music begins.

It’s like a concert, the way the sound echoes through the arena. Zack begins to sing, and Cloud finds himself, once again gazing at Zack.

He can tell Zack’s excited; he’s bouncing around the stage more than he typically would. It’s making the crowd jump with him, causing the excitement in the stadium to rise. If Cloud was more comfortable being around people, he'd probably be closer to the stage jumping along with them. In all honesty, it did look fun, but the idea of constantly bumping into the person next to him or someone near him accidentally hitting him with their arm didn't sound thrilling.

Cloud pulls out his phone to record a short video. Figures he should keep some record of this because this is a big performance.

“Gonna watch that later?” Aerith teases, nudging against him. She seems to be a little drunk, her sentences coming out a bit slurred.

“No” Cloud mutters. He’s most likely going to watch it later…maybe with Zack.

As Zack’s running from end to end of the stage, he seems to catch a glimpse of Cloud. He points over at the blonde and grins at him. Some of the girls in the crowd can be heard squealing, but Cloud averts his gaze and blushes.

“I don’t how he can spot you from there” Tifa huffs. She’s not drunk at all despite having a few glasses, but she holds her drink well, so it isn’t surprising.

“He probably just saw my hair. It’s a dead giveaway anyway” Cloud jokes. He’s always loved how Zack would always look for him in the crowd every performance, and he _always_ spotted Cloud.

The lights begin to flash as the song reaches its end. Flumes of flame shoot up from the stage when the final note is played. Cloud winces at the sight, his breath hitching. The orange glow reflecting off his eyes. He shakes his head, removing the image in his mind.

_It’s fine._

The buzzing of the instruments finally comes to a stop and the crowd starts to cheer and jump. Zack's waving at them all, mouthing 'thank you' to everyone. Such a people person he is. Cloud sees the band walking off the stage and head towards a room on the side. That's probably where they kept their belongings.

“I’m gonna go find Zack” he states to the girls as he slips off of the seat, placing his phone into his back pocket.

“Alright. Don’t get lost” Tifa teases. Aerith is leaning on her shoulder, seems to be mumbling something inaudible, Cloud can’t hear it, but Tifa seems to be blushing.

“We’ll meet up with you guys later. I’ll text you?”

Tifa nods, waving at Cloud as he disappears into the crowd.

Cloud’s pushing his way through the sea of people. Seriously, it’s so congested in here. Cloud’s so focused on moving through, he doesn’t hear a word the announcer is saying.

“…And for our last band…”

Cloud can see the area Zack had disappeared into. He’s almost there. Almost out of this dense crowd.

“From Sector 6—They will be performing the song that started it all…”

Cloud breaks from the crowd and catches his breath. There’s a flight of stairs that lead up towards a room. He takes one step on the stairs and the next band begins to play.

It’s loud… so loud. Sure, Zack’s performance was also loud, but that was…pleasant? This…this is just loud and overbearing.

Cloud tries to ignore it and continues to take a few more steps up the stairs. That is until something takes hold of him and he violently flips around.

_Cry Out_

_Oh, I’m burning out_

_Can’t you hear the sound?_

_Voices all around_

_‘Cause we’re going down_

This was…

These were lyrics that Cloud wrote…the song that _he_ wrote in college right before everything started spiraling downhill. Right before everything changed, right before his dreams were snatched from him…

He _never_ imagined he’d hear them again.

Puffs of flames, once again, rise from the stage. However, this time, they were bright and untamed. It almost looked as though they were engulfing the whole stage. Everything glowed orange and Cloud can feel the heat from it.

Cloud stumbles on the stairs as he stares wide-eyed at the flames. He grips tightly at his chest, his breathing becoming unsteady.

No.

The flames trigger something in him that he’s tried so hard to push down over the years.

Burning everything is burning, smells like ash… A cry for help echoes in his head.

No.

He looks back up to the stage and breaks into a cold sweat.

Sea green eyes staring directly into his. An ominous smile creeping onto the man’s face. His silver hair draping down his back, the orange reflecting off the man’s skin.

Cloud grips his chest tighter; he can’t breathe.

_I’ve finally found you, Cloud._

_No._

Cloud glances around. He needs to get out of here. Just. Get. Away. He can’t be in here any longer. He feels the heavy weight that’s dragged him down for years grasp back onto his ankles, almost like shackles.

There are too many memories flooding into his head. Memories he'd much rather forget. The burning…the cries…the sirens…his screaming…and the man who turned his back on him…the laughing…

_No more…_

_Please…_

_Just leave me alone…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, here we go I supposeeee~ We moving into the Seph stuff. Hope it sounds ok? Or I guess delivered the feelings ok?  
> But I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Right now, I seem to be moving over my overall draft slighlty faster than I suspected, so the chapter count may change. I'm not entirely sure yet, but it should still be around 18 chapters. Also the song referenced is Cry Out by one ok rock. I honestly really wanted to use Ominous by the gazette, but I had already mentioned cry out as the song Cloud wrote that ended up being Seph's most popular song...so I couldn't exactly change it lol. Prolly should've thought about it more before haha
> 
> Also, of topic, but there's a lot of fires going on here in Colorado, makes the air hazy and smells like pine, not the best for my asthma lol... but that's summer for ya....sigh Also classes start in 2 weeks...I'm not ready. I've got a research class for psych and let me tell you...I hate research. Why am I a psych student then? Honestly couldn't tell you lmao AND on top of that I've got calculus and computer science lololol this semester bout to wreck me. Hopefully I can keep up with updates
> 
> But anyway, thank you all for the wonderful comments and support on this story! You're all so sweet. I try my best to reply to everyone, but sometimes I really just don't know what to say >_< But just know that I really appreciate it! See you all next chapter!


	8. Chapter 8

Zack, Angeal, and Vincent all head into the waiting room after they finish their performance. They gather their things to clear it out for the band that will be using it after them.

Zack can hear the other band begin their performance. It’s loud, _very_ loud. Zack hears Angeal scoff behind him.

“I see he hasn’t changed” Angeal mumbles as he slumps down onto the couch.

“Something wrong?” Zack asks the older man. He didn’t usually see Angeal act like this very often. Angeal was usually levelheaded, the person who kept him grounded. So, to see Angeal scoffing so obviously had Zack wondering what it is that’s bothering the man.

Angeal sighs, “The band that’s playing right now. They’re _loud,_ aren’t they?”

“Yeah?” Zack tilts his head, not sure as to what Angeal is trying to get at.

“Do you know who’s playing?”

“Not really” He didn’t bother checking the performance listing. More like he didn’t find the opportunity, he was hovering around Cloud up until he had to meet up with the band, even then, it was just practice.

“JENOVA” Angeal flatly says.

“JENOVA? …” It takes Zack a moment to register. JENOVA, the band that’s popular in sector 6, the band whose vocalist is Sephiroth… “Wait, is this really them?” Zack closes his eyes and does his best to listen more intently to the song, but it’s all loud. He won’t lie and say Sephiroth had a bad voice. In fact, his voice was beautiful, but the music overpowered it. Sounds chaotic.

As Zack continues to listen to the song, he catches the lyrics and suddenly he can’t contain his emotions, “This is the song Cloud wrote!” he exclaims. He remembers the lyrics, and this is certainly not how he envisioned it sounding like.

Angeal raises an eyebrow, “Um, I’m not sure where you got that from, but Sephiroth wrote that years ago”. He remembers Seph approaching him with the lyrics. There wasn’t anything wrong with them, in fact, they were beautifully written. However, the way Seph had wanted to deliver the song, Angeal did not agree with it. The silver-haired man wanted to express it as something aggressive. Angeal thought a softer yearning tone would fit the lyrics better. It was odd though, Sephiroth was always about grace in his delivery. So, him wanting to go for aggression was well…out of character to say the least.

However, they never came to an agreement, which ended up in Sephiroth splitting from the band. He even convinced Genesis, their bassist at the time, to later join him. Leaving Angeal to find two people to fill in their roles.

“No, I’m serious! I saw the song sheet at Cloud’s place, in _his_ own handwriting. It’s dated years ago” Zack tries to convince Angeal. Cloud may have never said anything, but why else would he have the sheet? And the handwriting matched that from his other songs.

“Hm…” Angeal hums as he thinks about what Zack had just said. Zack’s not one to lie…but when he thinks about it…

“What?” Zack asks, “I’m seriously not lying. It’s what I saw”

“I don’t doubt you” Angeal gets lost in his thoughts again.

“Then what is it?”

"It's just, maybe that really is the case," Angeal thinks back on his time with Sephiroth. There was a time where both of them were almost always in sync. They used to work well together. However, one day, he changed. Did a complete 180. He remembers Sephiroth becoming obsessed with something, obsessed with _someone_. Suddenly, it all clicks.

“It was him…” Angeal continues, trying to convert his thoughts into words.

“Was him?” Zack asks for clarification.

“The video of Cloud singing. I thought he sounded familiar. It’s the same voice Sephiroth used to always listen to” He remembers Sephiroth sitting to the side of their studio with his phone close to his face. There was an aura about him during that time. An aura that screamed greed, like he wanted something. Angeal never found the need to question him at the time. Thinking about it now, maybe it would have been better to ask back then, maybe Sephiroth wouldn’t have gotten lost.

Zack stares at Angeal wide-eyed, "Are you telling me Sephiroth knew Cloud for _years_?” Zack didn’t know much about Sephiroth as a person since Angeal never spoke about him. Seemed as though they parted on bad terms. However, if Sephiroth _knew_ Cloud, then what was their relationship? It couldn’t have been good since this song is Cloud’s not _his_.

“I can’t say how long they’ve known each other. All I know is that Seph was obsessed with the kid” Angeal explains. Sephiroth never spoke of Cloud and given that Cloud never said anything when he met him for the first time, it was safe to say that Cloud didn’t know Sephiroth used to be the vocalist for Crisis Core.

Zack thinks about Cloud's reaction when he had snatched the song sheet from him. Fear, shame, guilt, and sorrow all swimming in his blue eyes. "I—I gotta go find Cloud” Zack proclaims as he grabs his things and rushes back out into the stadium.

The stadium, it’s hot. Probably because of all the flames rising from the stage. It’s too much. They had only used the flames to get the crowd excited, but this band, JENOVA, they used the flames for something else entirely. Zack wasn’t sure what exactly, but the way the flames cover nearly the whole area of the stage, one would think they wanted to burn the whole place down.

Zack glances around, he remembers seeing Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith sitting near the bar. So, he quickly pushes his way through the crowd and makes his way towards that direction.

He can see Aerith’s bow and eventually he catches sight of Tifa, but Cloud wasn’t in sight.

He approaches the girls, “Tifa, Aerith…”

Tifa turns around at him frowning, there’s so much worry in her eyes. Aerith seems to be a little out of it, she’s probably drunk, given the way she’s leaning against Tifa.

“Where’s Cloud?” Zack asks. Seeing the worried expression on Tifa’s face made his heart shake. There’s something more going on and Zack doesn’t know about any of it.

“He went to look for you a while ago…” Tifa says, her brows furrowing, “You didn’t see him?”

Zack shook his head, “No…” Now he felt himself growing worried.

Tifa sadly glances over at the stage, the orange reflecting off her crimson eyes “Zack…”

“Yeah?”

“Please…please find Cloud. I’m afraid he’s…not in the greatest mindset right now. And I know, I know he needs someone to be there for him right now” She thinks about the time she found him in college. She never wanted to see him like that again.

Zack nods, “Don’t worry I’ll find him”

He jogs around the edge of the stadium trying to find Cloud in the crowd or just anywhere in the stadium itself. However, it didn’t seem like the blonde was anywhere in the building. Zack sighs. Where could Cloud have gone? He figured it’d be unlikely the blonde would still be in the stadium given he didn’t like crowded places.

His heart aches. He didn’t like the thought of Cloud eating away at himself alone. He’s always known Cloud had issues with himself. Zack wanted to be a pillar of support for the blonde, wanted to protect him. However, he was never able to ask his boyfriend about the things that bothered him, the things that worried him. Zack knew they were there, but he decided to ignore them and act like they didn’t exist. He figured Cloud would tell him eventually. But when would that be? Maybe Cloud didn’t want to talk about his problems, but Zack just wants to make sure that Cloud understands that he’ll be there for him no matter what.

Zack pushes open the doors of the building, the cool breeze from outside blowing into his face. He walks into the parking and looks through the area. Cloud’s bike is still there, so, that’s a good sign. He didn’t leave.

He jogs to the back of the building and glances around. Still no sign of Cloud.

“Where is he?” Zack huffs to himself.

As he’s about to leave the area, he hears light mumbling above him.

_“No…”_

_“Stop…this—”_

_“This isn’t what I wanted…”_

Zack looks above him. There’s a ledge hanging off the side of the building. _Is someone up there?_ He finds a ladder that leads up to the overhang. He climbs up the ladder. His heart clenches over what he finds. Cloud’s curled up against the wall, his knees pulled up to his chest, and his head tucked down.

“…Cloud?” Zack gently calls out.

Cloud visibly flinches upon hearing his name. He lifts his head just enough to see Zack. Tears are running down Cloud’s eyes, his face a little red from crying. He seems to have trouble steadying his breath.

“Z—Zack?” Cloud calls out, his voice hoarse from the crying.

Zack approaches Cloud and takes a seat next to him. He runs his fingers through the blonde spikes, Cloud leans into his touch.

“You okay?” Zack asks, keeping his voice steady and light, even though it pained him to see Cloud crying here alone.

Cloud takes a deep breath and nods his head, “I—I’m fine”

Zack frowns. Cloud always says he’s fine. Never complains, never vents. Just keeps it all bottled up within himself…always.

Zack leans in and places a gentle kiss atop Cloud’s head, “You know I care about you”

“…Yeah” Cloud mumbles.

Zack takes a deep breath, "So, you don't need to handle everything alone."

Cloud lifts his head and turns to Zack, then averts his eyes to the ground, “I don’t, I don’t wanna bother you with my problems”

“Cloud” Zack pulls the blonde’s eyes back to his. Zack pulls him into a kiss, “You wouldn’t be bothering me. I _want_ to know more about you, and that includes your issues. I told you before, I’m here to stay”

Cloud doesn’t say anything, he just stares into Zack’s eyes, not knowing what he should reply with.

“How would you feel if I was crying by myself somewhere?” Zack adds on.

“I…I wouldn’t like that. I don’t want you to feel upset…” Cloud admits.

Zack smiles and continues to run his fingers through Cloud’s hair, “Me too”

Zack lifts himself off the ground and extends his hand out to Cloud.

Cloud looks up at the hand that’s extended towards him. He releases his grip around his legs and reaches for Zack’s hand. Zack pulls him up from the ground and into him, hugging him. Zack gently rubs Cloud’s head, “It’ll be okay. Wanna head back to your place?”

Cloud didn’t feel like going to his apartment. Too many things there that would trigger him right now. “Can we go to your place instead?”

Zack huffs out a chuckle, “Sure, whatever you want”. He releases Cloud and heads back down the ladder. He patiently waits for Cloud to come back down as well.

He intertwines his fingers between Cloud’s once they’re both down. Zack gives Cloud one last smile before they head back into the parking lot. However, a voice breaks the moment between them.

“And I was hoping to find you alone” the man huffs.

Cloud shudders upon hearing the voice and Zack immediately hides Cloud behind him. He glares at the silver-haired man.

“What do you want?” Zack says sternly.

Sephiroth glances at Cloud, then over at Zack. Visibly unamused, “I take it you’re Zackary. To think _this_ is my replacement. Angeal must’ve lowered his standards”

Zack winces, “Shut up, as if you know anything. You’re the one who walked out on him”

Sephiroth shrugs, “We didn’t agree on things. Anway,” he glances back over to the blonde, “I’m here to talk to Cloud, not you”

Zack feels Cloud’s grip tighten on the back of his shirt, “Seems to me he obviously doesn’t want to talk you”

Sephiroth ignores Zack, “Cloud, didn’t you promise to write me some songs? I think you still owe me that”

Cloud remains hidden behind Zack, however, the frustration builds within him. Everything he tried to contain under the lid beginning to boil over, “That’s in the past! There’s no reason for me to write you anything! Just leave me alone!”

Zack’s startled. Cloud _never_ raises his voice like that.

“I’m not asking you” Sephiroth sighs.

“You can’t _force_ him to do anything!” Zack yells back. He didn’t know Sephiroth, but he certainly hated how cocky the man was acting. He had no right to talk to Cloud this way, "Just get the hint and fuck off, would you?”

This brings a smirk to the silver-haired man's face, "Thinking getting into his pants would get a song written for you?"

A nerve snaps in Zack and he lunges forward, but Cloud holds him back, “The fuck you just say?! Cloud’s a _person_ , not some tool!"

"Please, don't give me that bullshit," Sephiroth's eyes harden, "I know you've seen the songs he's written. He’s a genius. Anyone would do anything to get a song written by him. My band’s most popular song is… well it’s a good song isn’t it” He smirks.

“That’s my song…” Cloud mumbles, barely audible.

“I’m going to need you to _speak up_ , Cloud” Sephiroth commands.

Cloud clenches his jaw and stops hiding behind Zack. Hatred and disgust reflecting in his blue eyes, “That’s _my_ song! I never gave it to you! You stole it from me! You—” Cloud’s voice cracks, he tries his best to swallow the tears that tried to emerge, “You took everything!”

Zack keeps his grip on the blonde’s hand, he can feel Cloud trembling.

“Why…Why’d you have to betray me like that…” Cloud quiets.

Sephiroth sighs, “I just realized your true value, that’s all”

Zack couldn’t hear any more of this. He didn’t want Cloud to hear any more of this. He couldn’t stand how this man could speak of Cloud like some he was some sort of item. He pulls Cloud into him, “Let’s go, Cloud”

He guides Cloud around Sephiroth and doesn’t look back.

"Our business isn't done Cloud" Sephiroth adds before the two can escape into the parking lot.

After they escape into the lot, Zack looks back to Cloud, "You okay?". Zack wasn’t sure how Cloud would be feeling; upset? Angry? Or maybe troubled. All he knew was that Cloud _never_ rose his voice like that and he’s never seen him cry either. Cloud’s trembling against him, definitely in shock from his emotions bursting out like that suddenly.

Cloud just nods and walks over to his bike. Zack follows, he’ll hold his questions until they get back to his place.

Cloud’s positioning himself on the front of the bike.

“Maybe I should drive?” Zack mentions. Sometimes emotions can distract people especially when driving. If Cloud was feeling…emotionally compromised, then maybe it’d be a better idea for Zack to drive.

“It’s fine," Cloud notices the worry etched on Zack's face, "…Don't worry I can still drive, okay?"

“Alright, if you say so” Zack climbs on behind him and wraps his arms around Cloud’s waist and nuzzles into his back. He wanted to comfort Cloud in any way he could right now.

The drive to Zack’s apartment was mellow. There was no speeding, no cutting people off, Cloud just drove by the book.

Cloud pulls the bike into the spot near the stairs. They walk up the steps and Zack remembers to send a text over to Tifa. She was probably worried sick.

Zack: _Hey, found Cloud. We’re at my place right now. Don’t worry he seems to be a little better now_ _😊_

After he sends the message, he puts his phone on silent and slips it into his pocket. Right now, he wants to focus on Cloud.

Once they enter the apartment, Cloud immediately flops onto the couch and closes his eyes. Zack takes the seat next to him and gently rubs Cloud’s thigh. He tries to get a read on Cloud’s feelings, but that’s something he’s never been all that good at.

“Cloud…” he says, observing the blonde.

Cloud opens his eyes and turns his head towards Zack, “Hm?”

He’s not sure if it's okay to ask Cloud about everything, but eventually, he needs to know. "What are you thinking?" 

“What am I thinking?” Cloud averts his gaze, “…Nothing much”

“Cloud, come one,” Zack pokes the blonde’s forehead, “I know you, there’s no way you’re thinking _nothing_ ”

Cloud huffs out a chuckle. Zack's always so considerate in lightening the mood. "Well, I guess a lot happened today". His heart tightens when he remembers everything; the flames, the song…Sephiroth.

“You wanna talk about it?” Zack keeps his hand on Cloud’s thigh. Doesn’t tighten his grip, doesn’t lighten it, just leaves it there as assurance.

Cloud knew he had to tell Zack eventually. He knew Zack had questions. It wouldn’t be fair to just leave him in the dark. It’s just, where does he begin? “It’s a long story” Cloud states.

“I don’t have anywhere to be” Zack gives Cloud an assuring smile and patiently waits for the blonde to gather his thoughts.

Cloud takes a deep breath, “I’ve known…Sephiroth…” he winces upon saying the name, “For a while”

“How long?” Zack keeps his voice steady in order to keep Cloud calm. He knows talking about this couldn’t be easy.

“Since I was in high school, well, more like I knew about him in high school. We didn’t start…” Cloud trails off, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Zack brushes his thumb along Cloud’s thigh, “Didn’t start?”

Cloud releases a shaky breath, “We didn’t start…dating…until I entered college”

Zack’s surprised to hear about them being exes, but he doesn’t let that show. He’s not jealous or angry, just surprised. Cloud’s past is just that, his past. Zack nods his head urging Cloud to continue.

Cloud steadies his breath, thinking about where he should start. There was so much. Maybe it’d be best if he just started from the beginning. That sounds good…

Cloud closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. _It’s okay…Zack is here, with me…_

From the beginning, this was where it all started…

“There was an accident that happened when I was in high school…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a short chapter today... I think the interaction with Seph might've been a little short, but there will be more coming <_< Next chapter will be a flashback of Cloud's past.
> 
> Also chapter will be once a week now. I was doing 2 chapters a week the past couple weeks, but ya once a week now. Also this story is actually almost done, which is why I edited the chapter count. I'm expecting 5 more chapters at most.
> 
> But anyway thank you all for reading! And as always I appreciate the comments you all leave me ;-; Feel free to come by own twitter @thea_who   
> See you all next week!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: there are thoughts/acts of suicide.
> 
> Also there is some Sephikura in this, but this is for Cloud's past purposes.
> 
> This chapter is about double the size as my usual chapters so get ready for a read (this one's about 7k words)

_8 years ago_

It was a cloudy day in Nibelheim. The teenage Cloud was finishing up his walk in the forest. He always loved walking through the woods because of how isolated it was. He didn’t really get along with the other kids in town, so, he found tranquility within the woods. He had even set up his own little camp there. A place to escape to for a little while whenever he felt overwhelmed. It’s also the place he kept his music sheets hidden away. No one knew his love for songwriting, and he planned on keeping it that way. People made fun of him enough.

He started to hike back to town when he noticed the clouds changing. It had been overcast all day, but the clouds had started to thicken, the color becoming a deep grey; the smell of rain filled his senses. Looks like something is forming within them.

As he emerged from the woods, Tifa ran up to him. Tifa was the only other teenager he talked to in town. She seemed genuine and she didn't ignore him as the other kids did. She was really pretty too. He knew the other boys hated him for being close to her.

“Cloud! I was about to go get you. There’s supposed to be a storm rolling in” She pointed to the clouds rolling in above the mountains.

Cloud nodded, “I saw the clouds thickening”

She smiled at him, “Come on, it’s dinnertime. My parents asked me to invite you”

Although the offer was tempting, his mother still probably thought he was still in the woods. “I think I should have dinner at home, my mom is probably wondering where I am”

Tifa nodded her head, “You’re right, if anything she’s probably already swung by my house, checking to see if you’re there”

It’s true. His mother would become worried if he was gone for more than an hour, especially if the weather was changing for the worse.

He and Tifa walked through town towards their houses. The had lived close to each other, nearly neighbors. However, Tifa's house was located at the bottom of the hill and Cloud's was on the top. He first walked Tifa to her house and greeted her parents. As Tifa said, they invited him for dinner, however, he told them just as he told Tifa; he had to go home to his mother. They told him to say hi to her for them. Cloud nodded and made his way up the hill to his house. The clouds that were hovering above the mountain were now rolling into town. The large tree placed next to his house swayed back and forth as the wind pushed it around. He could hear the rumbling of the thunder forming in the clouds.

“Mom!” Cloud called out as he entered through the front door. The smell of food was in the air.

"Cloud, oh thank goodness, I was getting worried" His mom emerged from the kitchen, wearing an apron. She was finishing up making dinner. She had the same blonde hair like him, however, hers wasn't spiked like his. He had no idea where he inherited this spiked hair.

“Sorry, I got distracted…but I noticed the clouds changing to I started to come back. Ran into Tifa on my way back. Her parents told me to tell you they said hi”

His mom smiled, “Well that’s very nice of them, I’ll make something for them for you to bring by sometime. But come on” she beckoned him to the kitchen, “Dinner’s ready”

He walked into the kitchen, a widespread of food was laid out on the table. All his favorites. Both he and his mother sit at the table and began to eat dinner.

As they eat, a gentle pitter-patter started to be heard. Rain had started to fall. Became stronger as time went on, the wind blowing the rain in multiple directions.

"Thanks, mom," Clouds said as he finished his food. His mom was also finishing hers.

She smiled, “Go get showered up and ready for bed. You’ve been out all day. Don’t worry about helping me out”

“…Are you sure? I don’t mind helping with the dishes” Cloud usually would help with clean up anyway.

"No, no, go get washed up now," She said, pushing Cloud out of the kitchen.

Cloud looked back into the kitchen, his mom was already clearing the table. He sighed and made his way up the stairs and into the bathroom to get showered.

He turned on the water and stripped his clothes as he waited for the water to warm up. When he deemed it warm enough, he stepped into the shower. As he showered, his mind started to wander. He had school tomorrow. All his homework was done, nothing to worry about. However, that wasn't why he thought about school. Cloud had a crush on a fellow student who was a year above him. His name was Sephiroth and was one of the top students in the whole school. He had medium-length silver hair and beautiful sea-green eyes. Cloud's been trying to get his attention throughout high school. He studied hard to get the best grades, made the top of his class, made top 5 in his grade, and even made the top 20 in the whole school. He'd linger in the areas he'd know the boy passed by.

He’s met eyes with the student every so often and even smiled at him, but the boy never said anything to him. Maybe Cloud just had to approach him and just say something. Sephiroth would be graduating this year, he didn't have much time left. He knew what college Sephiroth was going to, Midgar Performing Arts. One of the best schools for music in the whole country. Sephiroth had a beautiful voice, he had heard it before when he was walking by the music room. It's no wonder the silver-haired boy got accepted. Cloud planned on applying there as well, however, it was unlikely he’d be accepted, but it doesn’t hurt to just apply anyway. So, bottom line, he’d try to talk to Sephiroth now or just forget about this crush of his.

Cloud finished his shower and stepped out, drying himself off and pulled some fresh clothes on. He was finishing drying his hair when suddenly a loud boom of thunder caused him to jump. He could hear the roar from the storm, seemed to have gotten stronger while he was in the shower. Thunder didn’t particularly scare him, but the loud crash that rung through the house worried him.

_‘That wasn’t thunder…’_ Cloud thought to himself. He wasn’t sure _what_ that sound was, but it didn’t sound like anything good. Worry started to wash over him, and he stormed out of the bathroom.

The storm sounded much louder than it should. Almost as if it was raining in the house. He turned the corner and rushed down the stairs. However, as he got further down the stairs, something wasn’t right. The whole lower level was glowing orange, and there was a heat that radiated straight to his face.

Cloud’s breathing started to quicken; the smoke that was wafting through the air was being sucked into his lungs. He coughed violently and hunched forward. He placed his hand on the wall to steady himself and carefully guided himself around the corner where the kitchen would be.

His eyes widened at the sight. A large tree was laying in the kitchen, seems to have fallen onto the house given the large gash in the wall. That’s why the rain had sounded so loud… However, the tree—the tree was burning. Engulfing the whole area around it in its flames… Wait… his mom was in the kitchen…

“M—Mom….” Cloud tried to voice, but the smoke that entered his lungs made it hard for him to say anything.

He moved closer to the area, “Mom!” He tried yelling louder. He couldn’t get his breathing to steady. He didn’t care if more smoke got in his lungs. He franticly ran into the flames, his arms shielding him from the heat. But the flames still burned at his skin.

"M—Mom!" He searched and searched trying to find any sort of glimpse of her. Maybe she wasn't here…maybe she had gotten out of the kitchen before the tree fell.

However, that was wishful thinking.

Cloud saw her blonde hair, her face towards the floor…her body buried underneath the tree…

“M—Mom…” he choked out.

This has to be a dream…

He approached the body and moved his hand into hers, “Mom…”

Her hand weakly gripped his own, “Cloud…”

Cloud’s eyes widened, she wasn’t dead, “Mom! We got to get you out!” He tried pushing the tree, but he jerked his hands back as the flames burned the palm of his hands.

He started to become frustrated, kicking the tree. Tears flowing down his face, there had to be something he could do, _anything_.

“Cloud…” she weakly voiced. She did her best to reach out for her son, which grabbed his attention.

“…Mom” His voice broken, tears streaming down his face.

She carefully moved her head to look up at him. And…she smiles, “Cloud, you need to get out of here…”

Cloud violently shakes his head, “I’m not leaving you!”

“Cloud…I…I’m not getting out of this…it’s okay…alright…you’re—you’re a strong boy…my son…”

Tears kept stinging his eyes, clouding his vision. “Mom—I—I need you…”

She held back her tears, "It—It's okay, everything will be okay, alright. I believe in you"

“M—” Cloud was interrupted by a voice.

“Cloud! Claudia!”

The silhouette of a man appeared in Cloud’s vision. He couldn’t tell who it was because of the smoke. But by the sound of his voice, maybe it was Tifa’s father.

“Cloud!” The man grabbed Cloud and threw him over his shoulder and rushed out of the flames.

"W—Wait! My mom, she's still in there!" Cloud frantically let out.

The man rushed Cloud outside the burning house and placed Cloud somewhere safe, “We’ll search for her, just stay put, Tifa will be here to get you out of the area, alright. Just stay put” Tifa’s father rushed back into the building. Cloud noticed the fire department had arrived.

Since when did they get here?

“Cloud!” Tifa rushed towards him, “Thank God you’re okay” she pulled him into an embrace and observed him for any injuries. His arms and hands were a little burned but nothing serious.

Cloud doesn’t register Tifa. Just stared at the burning home in front of him. Orange, so much orange. The flames raging despite the rain falling. His breath quickened. This isn’t a dream…

“I—I—” his breath became erratic and he’s gasping for air.

Tifa quickly pulled back, “Cloud! Calm down, it’s okay!”

But it’s not okay.

His mom was still in there.

His home was burning.

He can’t hear Tifa, his head felt like it was going hollow, all the noise echoing in him.

His mind started to go black. He felt like he was falling. Before everything darkens, he caught a glimpse of silver hair. The boy’s expression looked…worried? He was rushing towards him and Tifa…

Suddenly his mother emerges from the darkness his mind was slipping into, and it’s as though he can feel her gentle touch, “ _I love you, never forget that…_ ”

Cloud scrunched his eyes and opened one before opening the other. There were bright LED lights glaring in his eyes and an equally bright white ceiling. 

_Where am I?_

He heard the beeping of a machine near him. He gently turned his head, seemed to be a heart monitor. Must be the hospital. He noticed someone’s hand resting on him.

“Tifa…” he croaked out.

Tifa shifted around waking up. When she noticed Cloud was awake, her eyes lit up. “Cloud! How are you feeling?” she asked observing him.

“I feel okay…how long was I out for?”

“Only a day. The doctor said you inhaled to much smoke, but he said you’d be fine”

That’s right…there was a fire. The memories flowed back into his mind made him shudder and break out into a cold sweat.

“Cloud?” Tifa looked worried.

“I—I’m fine, but…” he trailed off, not sure if he wants to know, “My mom…”

Tifa’s face saddened and she reached for Cloud’s hand, gently caressing it. “Cloud…listen…”

Cloud took a deep breath. He knew it couldn’t be good. He saw her underneath that tree…he tried to convince himself that everything was going to be fine, but he knew that was just wishful thinking.

"She…she didn't make it" She tried to hold back her tears. She knew how much Cloud cared about his mom. Claudia was always nice to her as well, always treated her as her own daughter.

“Oh…” there wasn’t much of a response from Cloud. So, mom…wasn’t here anymore? She…she’s really gone? He can’t imagine it…he _doesn’t_ want to imagine it. His mind started spiraling in an endless loop. He couldn’t grasp his own emotions. He couldn’t even cry….He couldn’t do _anything_ …

How could he be so…useless? Pitiful? He hated it.

Tifa couldn’t tell what he was thinking. His face went blank and he seemed to have gotten lost in his mind. As she was about to say something, Tifa's father walked into the room, removing his hat.

“Cloud…” His voice was soft and comforting, pulled Cloud’s attention, “It’s good to see you’re awake now”

“…Yeah” was all Cloud managed to let out.

Tifa’s father took a breath, “I’d rather not do this now, but I’m going to need to tell you eventually…My wife and I have decided to take guardianship over you since you’re still underage. I know it may be difficult adjusting to a new environment. But please know that we all care about you, we’ve always thought of you as family…you and Claudia both. Also, I’ve explained the situation to the school. If you need time, they’re giving you the option to do your classes remotely. Tifa can gather anything you need from your teachers”

Cloud thought it over. He didn't feel like going to school, but he didn't want to appear weak like he couldn't handle it. "It's fine, I can go to school"

Tifa’s father frowned, “Are you sure?”

Cloud nodded, “It’s fine, I’m fine”

Tifa’s father reluctantly took Cloud’s word, “…Alright. The doctor said you’re okay to return—be discharged today. My wife is making dinner later. You both feel free to take your time coming back”. He exited the room leaving Tifa and Cloud alone once again.

“Cloud…you sure you’re okay? It’s okay if you need to take time off, no one will think lowly of you”

“It’s fine Tifa” he sighed.

“Alright… I’ll gather your stuff and we’ll head back”

They clear the hospital room and head to Tifa’s house…his new _home_. Dinner was fine, everyone talked to him normally. Tifa’s family had given him the guest room. He arranged his stuff but made sure not to make it similar to his old room. He had to wake up early for school tomorrow.

Everything’ll be fine.

* * *

His day at school was ordinary, nothing different. His teachers interacted with him differently, like they were trying to be cautious, but his peers treated him the same. Not that they interacted with him that much. If anything, most of his peers didn't like him too much. However, one thing did stand out to him and wasn't sure as to how to deal with the change.

Sephiroth seemed to linger in areas that he would often pass by. Sure, maybe it was a coincidence, but it's usually Cloud who sought out Sephiroth.

After weeks pass, Sephiroth eventually approached him while he was placing his books in his locker.

“Cloud…”

He jumped at the voice. He looked back and forth, was Sephiroth really talking to _him_?

"Y—Yes?" He nervously said, unable to look the silver-haired boy in the eye.

“I just wanted to know if you’re doing alright…” Sephiroth leaned against the locker and gazed at the blonde, a worried look in his eyes, “I saw the fire that night…it was…terrifying, to see the house burning atop the hill. I ran up there as fast as I could, and I saw you with Tifa outside of the house in the rain. Seemed like you were losing consciousness. I was surprised to see you at school that week”

Cloud squinted his eyes. Had Sephiroth been there? He does remember someone rushing to him as he started losing consciousness. “Don’t worry, I’m alright…” At this point, he had told himself that he was alright so many times that his mind eventually believed it, despite whether it was true or not.

Sephiroth nodded, “That’s good”

There was an uncomfortable silence. Was Cloud supposed to say something? He’s never spoken to Sephiroth. He never would’ve imagined he would care about his well-being…

“You have lunch right now?” Sephiroth asked.

Cloud looked up at him surprised and nodded his head.

“…You wanna eat together?” the boy asked.

_Oh my god…was this really happening._

Cloud agreed to lunch with Sephiroth. After that, the two of them became closer. They were almost always found together. Sephiroth always kept Cloud close whenever possible. They found a common interest in music. Cloud always knew that Sephiroth was a great singer, but he was surprised to find out that they had similar tastes in music. Eventually, Cloud let it slip that he was planning on applying to the same school Sephiroth had gotten accepted into.

Sephiroth seemed surprised at first, but his face softened, and he smiled at Cloud. “I look forward to seeing you there then” was all the boy said.

Cloud’s heart fluttered. Going to the same college as Sephiroth would be wonderful…

Eventually, the day came for Sephiroth to graduate. Cloud had attended the graduation and met up with Sephiroth after the ceremony.

“Congratulations!” Cloud greeted as he approached the boy.

“Cloud, I’m glad you came”

“Of course, I wouldn’t miss this for anything…” Cloud looked over at the green athletic field, “Guess you’ll be leaving soon”

Sephiroth inched closer to the blonde, “Do not worry, I’ll keep in touch with you”

Cloud lit up, “Really?”

“Of course,” Sephiroth leaned in and placed a kiss on his cheek.

Cloud blushed, placing his hand on the place the boy had kissed, “W—what…”

Sephiroth smiled, “I look forward to seeing you there”

“Y—Yeah…”

* * *

_2 years later_

Sephiroth sat in the upper music room, drafting out ideas for a project. At this point, his hair had grown significantly. No longer the shoulder-length hair he had in high school. His hair reached the middle of his thighs. He was currently wearing it in a ponytail.

“Sephiroth,” a man with equally as silver hair called out to him grabbing Sephiroth’s attention.

“Kadaj,” he flatly said, “Do you need something?”

“Have you heard about the new freshman coming in?”

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow. He never paid attention to the new students coming in. However, this year, Cloud would be starting his first semester. During the time between now and high school, he and Cloud had started dating. At some point, he found himself getting invested in Cloud and truly loved his presence. Cloud just had some sort of effect on him, a relaxing effect maybe. All he knew was that he wanted the blonde to himself, so he ended up asking Cloud into a romantic relationship.

“No, I don’t usually pay attention to any of that”

"Well apparently one of them got a full-ride scholarship. He had passed the auditions with flying colors and impressed the chancellor," Kadaj explained, "I think you've got some competition"

Sephiroth hummed. The thought that the person was Cloud popped in his head but quickly dismissed it. Not to be rude or anything, but Cloud didn't seem to have that musically talented aura about him. Passionate, yes; but, gifted, no.

"I'm sure whoever it is, they won't be much of a problem," Sephiroth said confidently.

Kadaj hummed in agreement. He honestly couldn’t imagine someone over shadowing Sephiroth. He was the school’s prized student.

* * *

Time passed and Cloud safely got past his first year of school. He was now starting his second year. He and Sephiroth would sometimes meet up on campus and work on homework together. Since they've both become busy, their interactions almost felt business-like most of the time.

Cloud got through his first round of classes unscathed. Apparently, there’s a big show the school holds at the end of each year. His professors had talked him into performing a song. They said big people from the music industry will be there looking for talented performers. Cloud was at first reluctant to it, but he eventually agreed on it. He loved music, it’s what he wanted to do for a living. He remembers his mom saying how talented he was. He didn’t think much of it before, coming from his mom, he thought it was just her being kind to her son. But now—now he was starting to believe it. He had gotten so far on his own. He got the full scholarship, his peers regarded him highly and his professors saw something special in him. He’s sure his mom was smiling down at him right now.

He scheduled to have the practice room to himself to practice his song for the show. He took a seat in front of the grand piano and placed his music sheets in front of him. He played the notes he wrote and edited anything he felt needed to be changed. Over time he added words on top of it. He played through the music carefully constructing it so that the emotions would be properly presented. Cloud was so engrossed in it all that he didn’t notice Sephiroth enter the room.

Sephiroth stared at him, wide-eyed, "Cloud…did you write this?"

At this point, Cloud had already stopped playing. He’s never had Sephiroth listen to him play or sing. He was too nervous, what if Sephiroth thought he was terrible?

Cloud nodded his head, “Yeah…it’s just something I’ve been putting together for the show at the end of the year”

“Oh…” Sephiroth approached him and took a seat next to him on the bench, glancing over the music sheet, “It’s _very_ good. Why haven’t you showed me before?”

The tone in Sephiroth's voice was unlike any he's heard before, he's not sure if that's good or bad. "I don't know…was just afraid to maybe"

“Afraid? Why would that be? Cloud, this is _amazing_. I didn’t know you had such a talent for songwriting”

Sephiroth remembered what Kadaj said last year. There was a freshman who was enrolled that received a full scholarship…was that person really…

“Cloud,” Sephiroth started, “Was it you who got accepted with the full ride?”

"Ah…" Cloud twiddled his thumbs, "Yeah…sorry for not saying anything. I just didn't want to boast about it". Cloud looked up at Sephiroth and was taken aback by his actions. Sephiroth had pulled him into an embrace, but it wasn't like any other. Usually, Sephiroth was graceful and gentle whenever he embraced Cloud. However, this time, there was something rough and forced about this embrace.

“Sephiroth…” Cloud asked, trying to push the man off him and get a read on his expression.

Sephiroth pulled back, his eyes giving a fake smile, or so it seemed, “Cloud, you think you can write me something?”

"Huh? Write you something?" Cloud's never thought about writing for anyone. Honestly, it didn't interest him, "I'll think about it"

Sephiroth frowned then placed a kiss on Cloud’s lips. Once again, there was something rough about the exchange, “Come on Cloud, just this one-time”

Cloud sighed, “I said I’d think about it”

Sephiroth pulled back once again, “…Alright, but can I watch over your practices?”

Cloud felt a drop in his stomach, as if something wasn’t right. But he’s known Sephiroth for years and they’ve been dating for at least 2 years now, he was just feeling hypersensitive. Yeah, that’s what it was.

“Sure, just try not to distract me so much”

Sephiroth nodded, “Of course, work is work”

The end of the year grew closer, meaning it was almost time for the show. Sephiroth had come in to watch Cloud’s practices as often as he could. He would never say anything, just watch. However, the way he would watch made Cloud nervous. Sephiroth’s eyes were always stern, almost as though he was analyzing and taking in every aspect of his practices. Overall, there was a huge shift in the way Sephiroth treated Cloud. Everything was always rough, and he was always trying to coerce Cloud into something. Always saying something like _I’ve done this for you, so why can’t you do this for me?_ It never sat well with Cloud, be he always let it slide. Thinking that maybe he really had to give something in return.

Cloud was getting ready for his performance. He was hoping Sephiroth would be here to cheer him on, but he had texted Cloud earlier saying something came up. He entered the stage and all the lights pointed at him. The piano sat in the middle of the stage and he took a seat on the stool in front of the keys. He couldn’t see the audience very well because of the blinding lights. He took a deep breath and began to perform. Everything went smoothly, the way his fingers effortlessly glided across the keys, executing every note perfectly. He sang with confidence, projecting his voice just loud enough that it could be heard, but gentle enough that he was able to keep his breathy tone. Once he finished his performance. He took a deep breath, proud that he was able to execute his performance exactly as he intended.

He stood up from the stool and bowed to the audience. However, there was no applause. His heart sank, was it not that good?

“Cloud Strife” the chancellor entered the stage, approaching Cloud, a deep frown on his face.

“Lazard sir—” Cloud was about to bow before he was interrupted.

“Save it. Can you explain to me what the meaning behind all this is?” His voice was stern, anger lingered in his voice.

What’s going on? Why was Lazard angry? Had he done something wrong? “I—I’m not quite sure what you mean, sir…”

The man scoffed, “Are you sure? Because the whole audience seems to know _exactly_ what’s going on”

Cloud flipped his head to the audience. And there they were, murmuring amongst themselves, glaring at him.

Cloud broke out into a cold sweat. Why? Why was this happening? He had done so well, “I—I really don’t know what’s going on—I only performed my—”

“ _Your_ song? Are you seriously going to tell me you wrote this song?” Lazard sneered, “Sephiroth wrote this song and you want to tell me you wrote it? I do not tolerate plagiarism”

What? That’s not right? Why does he think Sephiroth wrote this song? "What are you talking about, I wrote it, I have the music sheets!" Cloud became frantic; he didn’t understand why he was being accused of plagiarism.

“Would you cut the act. Sephiroth had come to his professors for input on his performance for this song”

_What?_

_What the fuck does that mean?_

_He didn’t._

_He—_

_He wouldn’t…_

“Now because of this deplorable act, I’m afraid we’re going to have to revoke your scholarship as well as expel you from the school”

Now that pulled Cloud back to reality, “What?! You’re just gonna take his word just like that?! I have the original music sheet!”

Lazard squinted his eyes, “I’m aware you have incredible talent Strife, but Sephiroth is one of our top students. I find it hard to believe he’d do such a thing. However, if what you say is true, then please bring the evidence to my office no later than 6 pm tonight. If you're not in time, then your punishment stands"

Cloud stormed off the stage, immediately making his way to his apartment. In the meantime, he tried to wrap his head around whatever the hell was going on. Why would Sephiroth perform _his_ song to the professors? What sort of excuse could he possibly have? _Why_ would he even do something like that? He knew how hard Cloud worked in writing that song.

Many questions circled Cloud's mind up until he reached his apartment complex. However, he didn't make it to his unit. He found Sephiroth in the parking lot with a few sheets of paper in his hands.

_Are those what I think they are…_

Cloud rushed over to him, “Sephiroth! What are you doing?!”

In Sephiroth's hands were Cloud's music sheets, but those were locked in his apartment.

“Did you break into my place?” Cloud asked. He didn’t understand any of it. This wasn’t the Sephiroth he grew up with, this isn’t the Sephiroth that he grew to loved…

"Had to get rid of any kind of evidence," was all the silver-haired man said.

"Wait what? So, you really…you really claimed the song as your own? How could you? I thought—" Cloud was at a loss, how could he do such a thing after they had been dating for so long, after all the times they spent together…how could Sephiroth just take it all and throw it out as if it meant nothing to him.

“Oh, Cloud. You made a promise to me remember?”

Promise? What promise? “What are you talking about?”

“That night we spent together, and you were begging me to stop. I said I would if you promised”

Cloud rummaged through his memories. He remembered that night, things got steamy, and one thing lead to another. Eventually, Cloud couldn't take anymore, far overstimulated and something about the whole ordeal scared him. He didn't want to do it anymore. He remembered what Sephiroth had told him then…

_“Cloud, I’ll stop, but only if you write me a song for the end of the year, alright?”_

_“Fine, fine, just please…this is scaring me…”_

Cloud gasped, “Are you serious?! That was just—you were being serious?!”

Sephiroth shrugged, “You never ended up writing me the song, so I just took the one you were working on, that’s all”

“That’s all?” His frustration and anger started turning into denial, “ _That’s all_ you say? What about the times we spent? How could you do something like this to me? Do you know what the chancellor thinks of me now? I’ll have to drop everything! I just…I just wanted to make music…but you…you took everything…Just give me back my sheets!” Cloud tried to snatch the paper from Sephiroth’s hands but had no luck.

Instead, Sephiroth pulled out a lighter and set the sheets alight. He threw the burning pile in front of Cloud. Cloud flinched back, the flames reminding him of his burning home. Remembering how difficult it was to breathe, the orange glow reflecting off the walls of his home….his mother beneath the burning tree…

“N—no…stop” Cloud’s breath hitched, and his mind started to go blank.

“Ah, forgot flames make you remember _that_ time,” the man joked. “You should’ve just wrote me something in the first place. I wouldn’t have had to make things this bad”

“I—I thought…you loved me…” Cloud said, slumping down to his knees.

"Cloud of course, but how could you have hidden such a talent from me? You could've made me famous. With you creating songs for me, you could've lived a better life. But you refused to write for me." He shook his head and walked towards Cloud and gripped the blonde's jaw, forcing him to look up at him, "However, if you agree to sit quietly and write for me now…You'll at least be spared from the ridicule you’ll receive”

"And have you claim those songs as your own," Cloud said, anger and betrayal reflected in his eyes.

Sephiroth shrugged, “Doesn’t sound so bad”

“Fuck you…can’t believe you..you—” Tears started flowing down his face. He hated this. The last thing he wanted to do was cry, he didn’t need to look any more pathetic than he already did.

Sephiroth sighed, releasing Cloud as he stood up, "How disappointing. But well I guess this is a fitting ending. You'll never be able to set foot in the music industry again after this. Plagiarism—it's disgusting, don't you think?" he smirked, "But take this as a reminder, you're only good for writing music. Do you think you could make it in the industry? Please, you're a mess; you have no confidence and your voice is mediocre at best. Quite pitiful if you ask me, to think I dated you for this long, but I guess this is the end for now. I'll look for you in the future, you'll write my songs whether you want to or not"

With that Sephiroth left leaving Cloud to watch the flames as they died out.

So, this was it…there wasn’t anything left…he can’t go back to school, everyone knows about the deplorable act he supposedly committed…

Weeks passed, then months. Eventually, a whole year had gone by since having his dream stripped from him, since the person he considered his lover trampled over him.

Cloud never went back to school after that day. How could he? Just to be ostracized further? It wasn’t worth it. How could he even think he was worth being more…? There wasn’t anything in the first place. He should have never _tried_ to be something better. He should’ve known his place…Sephiroth was right…he never had what it took…

Cloud only left his apartment when he needed to restock on necessities, however, even that became tiring at a certain point. What’s the point of any of it? What was he even living for? He couldn’t even do the one thing he loved anymore… He tried to write music countless times, but every time, he’d just stare at the paper, remembering what Sephiroth had told him. _Worthless_.

He’d tug at his hair every time, begging everything to stop, wishing he was different. Cursed himself for who he was. Cursed his shitty life for all it was worth. He hated all of it. Wanted it all to end. No one would've cared anyway….

That’s right…

No one…no one would care.

Cloud got up; his eyes blank. He didn’t have to put up with any of it. He _never_ had to. He could just end it all whenever he wanted to. What was he holding onto in the first place? There wasn’t anything left anyway. There wasn’t anything to live for, no purpose, no dream…he was just a breathing corpse at this point, and it was tiring dragging his lifeless soul around.

He forced himself out of his apartment and to a nearby corner store. He lifelessly browsed through the shop, finally cornering on what he was looking for, a bag of charcoal. He brought it to the clerk. She looked up him worriedly but didn’t say anything. Why would she say anything anyway? Not like she knew him.

He returned to his apartment and turned on a burner on his stove. He placed a pan on it, then poured the entire bag of charcoal in it, not caring if some of the pieces missed the pan. He rested himself on his bed, allowing the fumes from the charcoal to fill the unit.

Cloud felt himself slowly become lightheaded, blackness clouding his eyes the longer the charcoal burned.

_Cloud_

_…Cloud_

_You can’t give up like this…_

He heard someone calling out to him, but he felt himself slipping, he didn’t want to reach out for the hand. But something about the plea in the woman’s voice made him think…

_Maybe someone would be sad to see him go…_

Tifa had made it a habit to check on Cloud periodically. Ever since she discovered what Sephiroth had done. She was furious and wanted to pummel the man into the ground, but Cloud told her to let it go. Saying it wasn't worth it.

She noticed Cloud growing more and more tired over time. His movements becoming more sluggish and he’d rarely remove himself from his dark apartment. She knew she had to do _something_. But she also knew the only way to help Cloud, was to find something for him to live for.

She knew how much the blonde loved music, ever since they were kids; and quite frankly, Cloud was naturally gifted. Cloud never believed that though. However, he began to grow more confident after beginning to date Sephiroth and earning that full scholarship to the top music college in Midgar. But that also meant that when all of that was violently snatched from him, everything he worked so hard on, everything he did to push himself up, all came crashing down, never to be seen again.

She had texted Cloud multiple times today but never received any responses. Growing worried, she proceeded to call him dozens of times. Every call going to voicemail. Her heart quickened…what if…

No, he’d never…he can’t…she wouldn’t let him do it.

She quickly hopped on her motorbike and drove as fast as she could to Cloud’s apartment. Her heart telling her that she had to be as quick as possible.

She pulled up to the apartment and leaped off the bike, sprinting up the stairs.

She stood in front of Cloud’s front door. She took a deep breath and knocked on the door, “Cloud?”

There was no response.

She furrowed her brows, then proceeded to bang on the door, calling out Cloud’s name and listening for any sign of movement within the apartment.

After a few more knocks, Tifa took a step back and jumped in place before reeling her leg back and kicking the door wide open, the latches on the side of the door tore off.

Immediately, smoke flowed out of the unit.

“Cloud!” She covered her mouth. Something about the fumes didn’t smell right, made her feel a little lightheaded. She noticed where the smoke was emitting from. There was a pan burning something on the kitchen stove. Tifa immediately went to turn the stove off. She noticed the bits of charcoal.

Tifa’s heart sunk. It’s dangerous to burn charcoal in a closed space because of the carbon monoxide it omits…

“Cloud!” She called out once again storming into his room.

She found him rested on his bed, seemingly lifeless.

“No…” she muttered to herself, quickly running to Cloud’s side, running her hand along his cheek.

“Cloud…” she gently called out to him. She couldn’t have been late there’s no way…she refused to believe it.

“…Cloud” tears started to flow down her face. She pulled him into her arms, cradling him.

Her voice started to break, “You can’t give up like this…”

She cried into his chest, dampening the shirt he wore. She felt him twitch underneath her. She quickly lifted her head, "Cloud? C—Can you hear me?"

He shifted in her arms. That was enough of a sign to get her moving. She pulled out her phone and immediately dialed 911 while lifting Cloud off the bed positioning him on her back.

“Hello, I need an ambulance fast! I think my friend may have a bad case of carbon monoxide poisoning…I’m at xx apartment….please, just get here quickly, I—I don’t know how much he’s breathed in….alright, alright”

She hoisted Cloud out of the apartment and made her way down the stairs. She rested Cloud on the side of the building. She can hear the sirens of the ambulance approaching…thank goodness.

She glanced over at Cloud, “You’ll make it through this, don’t worry…he won’t win. I _refuse_ to let him win” she murmured. Sephiroth didn’t deserve the last laugh, and Tifa would make sure of that.

When the ambulance arrived, the EMTs positioned Cloud onto the stretcher and into the ambulance. Tifa climbed in along with them. The ride to the hospital felt like an eternity, but she kept her hand gripped into Cloud’s.

_He’ll be okay_.

Cloud groaned as his eyes fluttered open. His surroundings were all white, everything was glowing. Was this—was he on the other side? Had he died?

“Cloud! Oh thank god!” someone latched onto him, pulling him back to reality.

“…Tifa…” he still felt dazed.

“I was—I was so worried. I—I thought you were… I thought I lost you… When they brought you here, the doctor—the doctor said you breathed in so much carbon monoxide…I,” she pursed her lips, “He said there was little hope… So—I braced myself for the worst…” Tears began running down her face.

Cloud frowned. Looks like he's caused trouble again… "I'm…sorry," he said, feeling disappointed in himself. He didn't mean to make Tifa cry.

Tifa lifted her head, “No, I’m sorry! I should’ve been there for you…”

Cloud shook his head, “There’s…no way you could’ve known. I was just…tired”

Tears filled her eyes once again and her grip on him tightened, “You don’t need to go through this alone you know. I’m always here for you no matter what.” She paused for a moment, “How about you come live with me for a while and help me out at the bar? It’ll be a lot of fun”

“Tifa…I wouldn’t—I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you like that…” He didn’t need to be any more pitiful than he already was…

“You wouldn’t be bothering me, Cloud. In fact, I would appreciate your help _and_ presence”

Cloud eventually agreed, although, he still felt reluctant about the idea.

After that, Cloud lived with and helped Tifa around the bar over the next year. During this time, he felt himself get a little better emotionally. Every now and then he'd still be triggered by something or get lost in his thoughts, in the thoughts that made him want to beat himself up. However, he was able to ignore them most of the time; the thoughts only lurking in the back of his mind.

He still didn’t write music. Just didn’t have the motivation or inspiration for it anymore. However, he came to terms with this. It may have been upsetting…but it wasn’t the end of the world, but a part of him truly missed music…

“Hey Cloud?” Tifa asked. They were currently wiping off the glass cups in the bar, preparing for the night crowd.

“Yeah?” Cloud responded, checking the glass for any imperfections.

“Why don’t you open your own shop?”

“What? My own shop? What kind of shop could I even manage?” he scoffed at himself.

"A music shop," Tifa said with confidence.

Cloud stopped what he was doing, “A music shop you say…”

“Yeah, I mean, you have a great ear and a great sense of quality products. I think you could help people find instruments or products to suit their needs”

“…I don’t know Tifa. I’m not much of a people person…”

“Oh come on, like that matters” she nudged him, “You’ve worked here long enough to learn how to deal with people.” Her eyes softened, “I know how much you’ve missed music and I think this may be good for you. To be surrounded by something you love, and who knows, maybe you’ll meet some people who love music just as much as you”

Cloud pondered over it. It surely didn’t sound like a bad idea. Maybe…maybe this was what he needed.

A new start.

Cloud huffed out a laugh, “Alright, let’s do it”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um hope you all enjoyed? A lot seems to have happened lol but here is Cloud's past how fun! Sephiroth is a big meanie, but our Cloudie is strong and he had Tifa there for him thankfully ;-;
> 
> Next chapter, we'll be seeing Zack's reaction to this all and what he plans on doing huhu
> 
> Until next time! Thank you all for the love to <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've got smut today my precious children!

Zack sits quietly as he listens to Cloud’s story, taking in every single word, making sure not to miss a single detail.

Whenever Cloud would get into a part of the story that would elicit a strong emotional reaction, Zack would brush his hand along Cloud’s thigh as comfort, always giving him an assuring smile.

Zack couldn’t believe how much Cloud had gone through. The intensity of it all was much more than what he had initially expected. Then, the fact that he could’ve lost Cloud that day begins to sink in.

Tears well up in Zack’s eyes, blinking a few times to stop them from falling, “Cloud I—I’m so sorry you had to go through all that. I can’t believe he did that to you. That heartless—” Zack takes a deep breath, calming himself, “You didn’t deserve any of that. Nor is any of it your fault, you got that?”

Cloud huffs out a chuckle. Seriously, Zack is too good to him, “I know that now…”

Zack embraces Cloud, giving him a comforting squeeze, “Thank you for telling me. I know that couldn’t have been easy, but thank you”

“I should be thanking you” Cloud quietly mumbles into Zack’s shoulder.

Zack pulls back, checking the blonde, “Why you say that? I didn’t really do anything”

Cloud shakes his head, “You’ve done so much; you’ve been patient with me, showered me with affection, never cornered me for information…you don’t know how much that’s all meant to me; and—and sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve you—”

Zack opens his mouth as if he were about to say something, but Cloud motioned him to stop.

“But…although I may feel that way sometimes, I really—” his eyes start to well up, the tears causing a shimmer within his blue eyes, “I really love you, Zack…I—I can’t thank you enough for everything”

Zack ruffles Cloud’s hair. Cloud may view himself as cowardly or undeserving sometimes, but truly, none of that was true. Zack believed Cloud was fearless and determined; the way the blonde pushed out his feelings to him was evidence of that.

“You’re really something you know” Zack grins.

Cloud looks up at him, Zack giving him one of the warmest, brightest smiles he’s ever seen on him.

“Zack…”

Zack presses a firm kiss on Cloud’s forehead, “I love you too Cloudy. You mean so much to me…I wouldn’t mind showing you time and time again the extent of my love”

Cloud blushes, “How can you say something so embarrassing”

Zack laughs, “You love it though, don’t lie”

A faint smile creeps on Cloud’s face, “You got me there”

Zack rubs gently on his skin, “One more thing though. What do you wanna do?”

Cloud looks at him, tilting his head in confusion, “What do you mean?”

“I mea—an, what do you wanna do about Sephiroth? Don’t tell me you just wanna forget about it. I mean, I get it, but he’s done and taken way too much from you. You can’t just let him freely walk around while the only reason he gained popularity was from a song _you_ wrote.”

Cloud looks at the ground, pondering over Zack’s words, “…I don’t disagree with you, but—but what am I supposed to do? Not like anyone is gonna take my word for it”

Zack hums thinking about his options, “You’ve got to have some sort of evidence. Something that proves the song was yours”

Cloud furrows his brows, “I told you, he burned my music sheets that day”

“Yeah…but you have to have something else. I know you do. Like a recording, or a digital copy of some sort. Like a backup maybe?”

Cloud pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to recall if he did in fact have any backups. His thoughts were so muddled, he had trouble thinking about it, however, he remembers Tifa confiscating anything that may have had any sort of trace of his time with Sephiroth”

“Tifa, she took a USB drive from me around the time it all happened. I don’t remember what exactly was on it, but I used to keep a lot of data on there, but it could also be just photos”

Zack hums, “Well that’s a place to start. We’ll pay her a visit tomorrow” Zack lets out a breath, easing the atmosphere, “You wanna stay over? It’s getting late don’t you think?”

Cloud glances over the clock. Hours had passed, and it was well into the evening now. Cloud nods his head, “I think that would be good and—” Cloud carefully brushes his nose against Zack’s, “I wanna spend more time with you anyway”

Zack’s heart flutters from the soft gesture and heat rises to the top of his cheeks. He nods in agreement.

Cloud pulls at his own shirt, “You think I could take a shower though? I feel kinda gross…”

Zack lifts himself up from the couch, "Yeah, let me grab you a towel" He heads over to the linen closet and removes a sky-blue towel and hands it over to Cloud. "Soap and everything will be in the cabinet under the sink" Zack explains.

Cloud reaches for the towel, his hand grazing against Zack’s. Cloud keeps his hand over Zack’s longer than necessary. It’s as though he wants to say something, but can’t find the words. Cloud’s face blushes a faint pink and he purses his lips.

“Cloud?” Zack asks, leaning into his space, “Something on your mind?”

Cloud doesn't say anything, just looks right into Zack's violet-blue eyes. He's searching for something or trying to convey something. Zack isn't sure what exactly.

Cloud pulls his hand away from Zack’s, along with the towel, “I’ll…go in now”

Cloud walks towards the bathroom. He looks over his shoulder one last time; something presumptuous gleaming in his eyes, before disappearing behind the bathroom door.

Zack places a hand over his face, trying to hide the red that crept up on his cheeks. _Was that an invitation?_

Cloud turns on the faucet of the bathtub, running his fingertips along the streaming water, waiting for it to warm up a little. Once he deems it warm enough, he closes the drain and allows the tub to fill. He had found a bath bomb in the cabinet and it smelled nice, like honey and lavender. He chuckles to himself, finding it fitting that Zack has a stash of bath bombs hidden in his bathroom.

Cloud places the bomb in the tub, allowing it to dissolve and fizz out, creating a swirl of purple and yellow in the water.

Cloud uses the detachable shower head to wash his hair, using Zack’s shampoo and conditioner. His olfactory senses then filled with Zack, causing him to blush in response.

After washing his hair, he rests himself into the warm bathwater. He exhales as his body relaxes in the water. He hasn't realized how tense he's been all night from everything. He closes his eyes as his pale face warms because of the steam emanating from the water.

He hears the door open and close gently, then the shuffling of another person

Oh good, he understood. Cloud couldn’t bring himself to ask so he had tried to make it obvious through his actions.

Cloud kept his eyes closed, waiting for Zack to step into the tub.

The water level rises as Zack dips in and Cloud opens his eyes to see Zack’s toned body delving into the water. Zack’s hair is damp, must’ve washed it before he got in.

"Hey…hope I understood that correctly back there," Zack says as he tries to act cool about this whole event. Despite the fact that his heart was racing, and his face was flush, but he'll just say that it's from the steam.

Cloud slides down into the water, the tip of his chin submerging underneath the water’s surface.

He nods his head. He didn’t bother to imagine how nervous he’d be. When he thought about it, they’ve never spent their time together like _this_.

Their heartbeats sound the quiet area, Zack tries to break the awkward silence, “You wanna sit a bit closer?”

Cloud nods his head and scoots into Zack’s lap, the water sloshing around as he shifts in the water.

Zack exhales and grazes his hand against Cloud’s arms underneath the water, “Much better yeah?”. He rests his head on Cloud’s shoulder, his hair dripping over Cloud.

Cloud hums in agreement while he relaxes into Zack.

“I see you found the bath bombs” Zack mentions.

Cloud chuckles, “You have so many”

“Is that weird?”

“No, I think it’s fitting” he teases.

“Can’t help it. I like things that smell nice…and you smell really nice right now” Zack flirts.

A brief silence falls between them. Cloud ponders over his thoughts in silence before quietly voicing them, "You really don't think of me differently?" Cloud asks unsure.

Zack nuzzles into his neck, “Of course not. Like I said before, you made it through all that, and that alone is huge. You’re amazing Cloud. I swear I fall for you more and more each day”

“Me too” Cloud mumbles and turns his head to the side placing a kiss on Zack’s head of hair.

Zack lifts his eyes to gaze at Cloud. He lifts his hand out of the water and gently turns Cloud’s head towards him and places an eager kiss on Cloud’s softened lips.

Cloud parts his lips slightly, inviting Zack in.

Zack takes the invitation and deepens their kiss, as one hand explores Cloud’s body underneath the water.

Cloud squirms as he feels something hard rub against his backside, “Zack…” he moans into Zack’s mouth.

“Hmm, you like that?” Zack groans as he grips Cloud, rubbing his thumb against the head.

"W—Wait, Zack…" Cloud pulls away for a moment before turning himself around, so that he's facing Zack, straddling him.

Zack gazes at his boyfriend, taking in the sight in front of him. His hands move to grip Cloud’s hips.

Cloud leans down and nibbles at Zack’s jaw before moving down to his neck.

Zack tilts his head back, allowing Cloud to explore as much as he wants.

Cloud runs his hand over Zack's chest, his fingers brushing against every dip and curve, admiring each and every detail.

Zack smirks, “Like what you see?”

Cloud hums and moves back up to kiss Zack. He gently pulls at Zack’s bottom lip.

Zack pulls him in close and can feel Cloud’s hard member rub against his stomach.

Zack growls thinking about how aroused both him and his boyfriend are becoming. Zack moves a hand back lower down Cloud’s spine, his fingers grazing against the blonde’s tight entrance.

Cloud shivers from the sudden contact. His cock twitches in anticipation. “Zack, c—can we please…do more today…”

Zack huffs out a chuckle, “Whatever you want”. He deepens their kiss and slides his tongue into it, intertwining with Cloud’s. Zack reaches for the basket placed on the side of the tub, pulling out a bottle of lube and pops the cap off.

Cloud glances over at the bottle, “You keep that in here?”

“Well, you never know” Zack chuckles.

Zack applies some onto his hands then moves his slick fingers to Cloud’s backside, lightly brushing against the surface before slowly pushing a finger into him.

Cloud shifts a bit from the sudden invasion, causing a wave to ripple through the bathwater.

“Relax a bit, it’s okay. I’ll go slow, I won’t hurt you”, Zack pulls Cloud closer to him, keeping his other hand on the blonde’s back as a means of comfort.

Cloud takes deep breaths as he focuses on the sensation.

Zack continues to slowly thrust his fingers into Cloud, seamlessly adding in a second finger when it seemed like Cloud had completely relaxed into him.

Cloud starts to rock his hips back and forth against Zack as he gets lost in the arousal; his cock beginning to seep precum.

Cloud shudders as he feels a third finger slide into him. Zack quickens his pace, causing Cloud’s breaths to become more ragged.

He wanted more. Wants Zack to fill him up, push into him relentlessly until he’s shaking and can’t take anymore.

"Za—ahck" Cloud moans, "I—I think that's—good enough, I—I want you inside me" Cloud pulls back to gaze into Zack's lust-filled eyes.

Zack flips Cloud over and lifts him out of the water, positioning him against the shower wall. Zack hovers over Cloud, positioning his cock right outside the blonde’s entrance.

“Like this?” Zack teases. He loved seeing Cloud like this, arousal taking over his senses.

“Y—yes, fuck…please, Zack, just put it in” Cloud begs as he arches his back for a better angle.

Zack groans as he grips onto Cloud’s hips and slowly slides himself in.

Cloud shudders as he’s filled beyond his limits. He knew Zack was thick, but fuck, this was beyond his imagination.

Cloud whines and stills once Zack pushes every inch into him.

“You okay?” Zack gently whispers into Cloud’s back.

"Mhm," Cloud hums.

Zack rubs Cloud’s back, “I’m gonna start moving okay?”

He starts at a slow pace; however, he quickly realizes how difficult for him it is to keep this pace, the feeling of Cloud’s tight wet hole rushes through Zack’s body. Zack groans and suddenly slams his cock into Cloud.

“Ah!” Cloud gasps, his body jolting from the sudden roughness.

“C—Cloud, sorry, but I don’t think I can control myself any longer”

Cloud tries to catch his breath, “I—it’s fine. Be as rough as you want…I only wanna think about you right now”

Zack shivers and tightens his grip on Cloud’s hips and begins to pound into him, pulling all the way out then quickly thrusting himself back in. Zack leans down and nibbles at Cloud’s back, leaving marks along his spine.

“Zack, harder” Cloud moans.

Zack effortlessly flips Cloud over and gently elevates him, placing him against the wall. He continues to pound into Cloud, however this time, he’s able to get a good look of the pleasure on his boyfriend’s face.

Cloud’s breathing hard, his face flush from the heat. His head rolls to the side and he catches Zack’s gaze. He lifts his arm and curls it around Zack’s neck, pulling him into a messy kiss.

“Just like that, that feels…really good” Cloud whispers into Zack’s ear, the sound of wet smacking echoing off the bathroom walls.

Zack groans, “Fuck Cloud…I think I’m gonna—”

Cloud hushes him, “Me too…you can—” he turns a bright red and clenches around Zack’s cock, “you can come inside…it’s okay”. He kisses Zack on the cheek, “I trust you”

Zack’s pace becomes frantic, “C—Cloud, fuck, I—I love you so much”, he holds Cloud close as he releases inside him.

Cloud arches back, letting out a long moan. His legs shake as he releases, feeling Zack filling him on the inside. Cloud goes limp and nearly slides from Zack’s grip, however, Zack’s quick to catch him.

“Woah there, wouldn’t want that now” He cradles Cloud and gently puts him down back into the water. He looks around then back at Cloud, who is currently still trying to catch his breath. “I think we’re gonna need another shower” Zack jokes.

Cloud huffs out a chuckle, a smile appearing on his face, “Yeah, think you’re right.

* * *

“Thanks for meeting us so early in the morning”

“Oh, it’s no problem. Besides, seemed like something important” Tifa says, “What can I do for you boys?”

“Well, Cloud was telling me that you had an old USB—”

“You took it around the time _that_ happened” Cloud finishes.

Tifa sifts through her memories, “Ah, I think I know what you’re talking about. It’s probably in one of the boxes upstairs. I’ll go check it out, but…why are you asking for it now?”

“There might be something on it…I think—” Cloud starts.

“Something we might be able to use against Sephiroth” Zack finishes Cloud’s sentence. They seem to be in sync today after last night.

Tifa nods, “Alright, I’ll go look for it. You boys sit tight. No funny business alright?” she glares at them.

Zack lifts his hands up innocently, “Got it”

Tifa disappears up the stairs, and Cloud looks over to Zack, “Do you really think there might be something on there?”

“You’re asking me? I think you should know better than me” Zack jokes, “But personally, I think the odds are good. You said this USB had some moments you and Sephiroth shared, right?”

“Yeah, some pictures for sure…there may be other stuff on there too”

Zack hums, “Wait! Wait, wait!” he startles Cloud.

“W—what??”

“Ah, man I’m such an idiot for not thinking about this earlier” Zack rubs his forehead in shame.

“Zack, what?”

"The song sheets you have at your place. Remember the one you snatched from me the first time I looked through them. I knew the song sounded familiar, that was the song the Sephiroth _supposedly_ wrote. You get what I mean? And it dates years ago”

“Oh yeah…” Cloud’s eyes widen, “I forgot about that…but, it’s not like their just gonna take my word for it, and my name isn’t even printed on it. Also knowing Sephiroth, he probably has a copy of it anyway.”

Zack slumps in his chair, “Yeah, but it’s a place to start at least”

Suddenly Tifa’s coming down the stairs with a laptop positioned between her arms, “Alright, I think this is the one” She sets her laptop on the table and flips it over so that the screen is positioned towards the boys. She inserts the USB and allows Cloud to sort through it. Zack’s leaning in, also looking for _anything_.

So far, just seems like a bunch of pictures, just as Cloud said. However, something catches Zack’s eye, “Wait, scroll back up. I think I saw something….there” he points at an mp4 file that was wedged in between the endless photo files.

Cloud clicks the file and it begins to play. He enlarges the screen so that it’s easier to see for everyone.

_"Is this recording right?" a younger-looking Cloud appeared on the screen. Seems to be like he’s positioning the camera._

_He took a step back and nodded his head when he thought everything was alright. He took a seat at the grand piano that was rested behind him. He then seemed to look over at someone before he proceeded to start playing._

_Cloud started playing through the song, the song that was unfinished at the time, the song that he was practicing for the show at the end of the year._

_He finished what he had and turns back to talk to the unseen man, “Sephiroth! What’d you think?”_

_The man appeared in the camera’s frame, his trademark silver hair draping down his back. He brushed against Cloud’s shoulder, “It’s very good. How long until you’re finished with it?”_

_“I think I can have it done in a few weeks. I’m pretty satisfied with the chord progression, just need to sort out the lyrics”_

_Sephiroth hummed, “Alright, you can send it to me when you’re finished. I’ll look it over, so you’ll have some other eyes to critique it”_

_Cloud nodded, “Okay!” He falls silent for a brief moment, his expression becoming unsure, “Hey, Sephiroth…do you think we can grab something to eat after this?”_

_Sephiroth sighed, “Haven’t I told you already? I’ve been busy, I don’t have the time to ‘grab something to eat’ with you”_

_Cloud visibly flinched, then gave a forced smile, "Oh yeah, sorry…forgot, you should be graduating soon. Maybe when everything dies down, I guess"_

_He didn’t get an immediate response, “I’ll see you again when you’re ready for another practice session”_

_“…Alright…see you later…”_

_The door shut and Cloud was left alone in the room. He let out a shaky breath. He turned his head over to see that the camera was still recording. He stood up from the seat and walked towards the camera, turning it off._

Zack abruptly stands up, “This is it! Cloud send that over to me asap!”

“Wait Zack, what are we gonna do with it? Send it over to the media? I doubt many people in Midgar care about the drama down here in the slums”

Zack huffs confidently, “Trust me, I have an idea. I know someone who can help”

Cloud took note of the confidence in Zack’s eyes, “Alright, I’ll send it over now”

“Cool! Alright—” Zack gathers his things, “I’ll see you as soon as I finish this up” he places a kiss on Cloud’s cheek, “Don’t worry, this’ll all be over before you know it. Just wait for me ‘kay?”

Cloud nods, and with that, Zack runs out of the bar.

“I’m sure he knows what he’s doing” Tifa adds, seeing the visible uneasiness on Cloud’s face.

Cloud nods, “I trust him. It’s just that…I never imagined this day would come. Just kinda thought I’d have to live with it, you know?”

Tifa hums, “Yeah, I get what you mean. But you know that’s not fair to you. You dropped everything for that incident. I know how bad you wanted to write music…even now”

Cloud huffs, “I really can’t hide anything from you…”

Tifa chuckles, “I know you front and back”

A comfortable silence falls between them.

“Tifa…”

She cocks her head, “Yeah?”

“You know…I’ve had an idea for a song, just—just haven’t gotten to writing it just yet…”

She jumps up, “Cloud! That’s great! I’m so proud of you! Do you think you’ll have it written anytime soon?”

“It’s hard to say. Guess I’ll see when all this is over”

“Do you think, you’ll want to perform it?” she says cautiously.

Cloud doesn’t say anything for a moment, “I think…I think I want to perform this one…it’s…special”

Tifa smiles, “Let me know whenever you’re ready, I’ll reserve the stage for you, okay?”

Cloud smiles, “Yeah, thank you Tifa. Thank you for everything”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some good times for the boys this chapter. Glad I was able to finish this up this week ;-; Things have been a little hectic lately, been moving into a new place and homework load has been slowly increasing, so I've been trying to find a way to balance everything out.  
> Also, looks like we're reaching the end. Just a note, this story may be 12 or 13 chapters, depending on how the next one goes :)
> 
> As always, thank you all for the kind words, I really appreciate it. Also noticed a few new commentors last chapter, thanks for that ;-; Also, thank you to the readers who comment every chapter, you guys are god sent huhu
> 
> Anyway, see you all next week! :)
> 
> Here's some art I did, I forget to share these with you guys sometimes
> 
> Here's one of Aerith from like chapter 7 or something lol  
>  <https://twitter.com/thea_who/status/1298420262526840832>  
> Another of Zack and Cloud from the same chapter
> 
> <https://twitter.com/thea_who/status/1294660400462487553>
> 
> And just a casual Cloud doing his thing huhu
> 
> <https://twitter.com/thea_who/status/1297759141113425920>


	11. Chapter 11

_Meet me at the abandoned train yard in an hour, I’ve got something I think you might find interesting._

Zack sits atop on the cargo trains, staring up to the sky. It’s still midday but the sun is slowly being blocked out by the clouds rolling in.

He checks the time on his phone: 12:30pm.

"She should be getting here soon," Zack says to himself.

He grips onto the USB, he'd sort out this situation whatever it takes. Cloud may say that he was fine just leaving things as is, but Zack knew that wasn't entirely true. He knows how much Cloud loves music. The way he would always tap his foot to the music, the way he hummed tunes whenever he thought Zack wasn't listening, even the distant look Cloud would get in his eyes whenever he spoke of his songwriting days. Zack can tell how much Cloud missed it.

Zack breaks out of his thoughts when he hears someone climbing up the ladder, her black hair coming into view.

“Seriously, did you have to choose the highest cargo train?” She breaths out, catching her breath as she climbed onto the top.

Zack chuckles, “Sorry, I like climbing up high places remember?”

She sighs, “Alright, so what is it. You only contact me when you need me”

“Aw come on, don't be like that. I text you happy birthday every year”

She rolls her eyes, “Spit it out Zack, I don’t have all day”

“Alright, alright. I’ve got this video, think you can make a big story out of it. I mean I don’t know a better reporter than you, Yuffie”

She cocks an eyebrow and puffs her chest at the compliment, "Well at least you know talent. What kind of video are we talking about?"

“A video that will essentially destroy _the great Sephiroth’s_ career,” He waves the flash drive in the air.

"Sephiroth? Of Jenova? Gotta admit I'm curious about what you've got on there. The band is so popular, I can't imagine anything taking him out."

“Well, I think you gotta see this. You bring your laptop?”

She nods and pulls it out of her backpack. They both take a seat on the ground and Zack puts the drive on her laptop.

He has her watch though the video without saying anything.

After she finishes watching, she turns back to Zack, “Wait, you mean to tell me that Sephiroth _stole_ that song?! They’re number 1 song isn’t even a song that _he_ wrote??” She stands there with her mouth gaped, “Zack, do you know how big this story is! Oh my god, I gotta write the report asap” She taps her foot as she scratches the bottom of her chin, thinking of ways to deliver the story.

“I think you’ll come up with something good, you always do”

She hums, “Why you wanna expose him though? You guys got beef with them or something? But your band is just as popular though…”

“Ah…well you see—” Zack scratches the back of his head, “My boyfriend is the one who has a problem with Sephiroth, but I hate him just as much because of everything”

“Your boyfriend is the one who with the problem…wait—does that mean he’s the one who wrote the song?? He’s the blonde in the video?”

Zack nods.

Yuffie's eyes light up, "Oh. My. God. This makes for a great story! Just imagine it," She wipes her hand across the air in front of her, as if envisioning the headline, "Boyfriend of Crisis Core's lead singer Zack Fair, is the _real_ songwriter of Jenova’s number one hit”. She puffs her chest, “It’s perfect!”

“Wait, wait, Yuffie,” He says quickly, “Please don’t mention Cloud in the article. Like you can say Sephiroth didn’t write the song and that someone else from the same school wrote it, but please don’t explicitly mention Cloud”

She tilts her head in confusion, “Why though? Wouldn't he want everyone to know that he wrote it? That popularity should be his. Why wouldn’t he want that?”

“I just…I don’t know if he’s ready for that yet. He had everything taken away from him, all of his dreams gone in an instant. I’m sure he’ll let people know when he’s ready”

She sighs, "Alright, I'll blur him out of the video and won't mention his name. Promis. Just—" She inches into his personal space and pokes her finger at his chest, "When he is ready, I want to be the first reporter to get the exclusive you got it?"

He laughs, “Alright, alright. I’ll let him know. I’m sure you guys’ll get along anyway”

“Good. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got lo—ts of work to do tonight. I want this out as soon as possible”

And with that, she hurries back down the ladder, leaving Zack alone.

"Always full of energy," Zack says to himself, placing his hands on his hips and shakes his head.

He had met Yuffie back when he was still doing street performances. She would always come to watch him. She’s always been full of energy, always coming and going whenever she wanted to.

Zack glances down at his phone. Cloud’s probably working right now. Zack decides to swing by and pay him a visit. Maybe help out a bit; sort through some stuff, do inventory checks, help ring people out, anything. He just wanted to spend time with Cloud right now.

* * *

It's a muggy day. The sky's been overcast all day, it had rained earlier this morning and the clouds decided to stick around. However, that didn't stop people from being out. Crowds were loitering on the roads and in the shops.

As Zack approaches the shop, he notices a particularly large crowd near the alleyway where Cloud’s shop was located, which was weird because it was never really busy around here. Not many people knew about Cloud’s shop. However, the closer he got, he could hear the gossiping of the crowd.

_Oh my god, is that Sephiroth?_

_Is the rest of the band here?_

_Why’s Sephiroth here anyway?_

_Does he know that guy?_

_Something seems to have happened…_

_Ex-lovers?_

_What no way. You think Sephiroth would waste his time dating someone?_

_I don’t know man, the blonde is pretty cute if you ask me._

_Hey, is that Zack?_

_What where?_

Zack frantically pushes his way through the crowd. He knew exactly who they were talking about, and he felt his blood boil. Sephiroth seriously had the nerve to show up _here_.

Zack finally gets through the crowd and rushes up to Sephiroth and shoves him away from Cloud.

“Didn't I tell you to stay the fuck away from him! Why the hell are you here!” Zack shouts.

“Zack” Cloud seems surprised to see him.

“Cloud, you okay? He do anything to you?” He checks Cloud up and down, making sure there was no harm done.

Sephiroth brushes himself off and moves his hair back over his shoulder, “Zackary, we were just chatting. I’d appreciate it if you didn't make a scene”

Zack looks around him. People were definitely talking, whispering amongst each other. Zack takes a deep breath, calming himself. He should probably keep a cool mind. Everything will be over soon.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to shove you that hard, just don’t really like you getting all close and personal to my boyfriend you know” Zack shrugs.

Sephiroth scoffs and turns his attention back towards Cloud, “I’d recommend you think about my offer. It would be in your best interest after all”

Zack looks over at Cloud, “What’s he talking about? What offer?”

Cloud doesn’t say anything. Just keeps his head low and steadies his breath.

“I offered him a job you can say. I’ll pay him as much as he needs, doesn’t have to work in _this_ shack of a place”

Cloud stands there, unable to hear what goes on after that. He knows Zack’s getting angrier, his voice filling with malice.

He and Sephiroth continue to argue back. The crowd surrounding them continues to whisper amongst each other, wondering why the two vocalists are arguing.

Cloud doesn’t want anyone to think ill of Zack, he’s just trying to protect him. He’s always trying to protect him, always standing up for him. Cloud appreciated that, but he knows that there will come a time when he needs to stand up for himself.

Cloud takes a deep breath and steps forward. He firmly grips Zack’s wrist and tugs him back. Zack flips his gaze to him, there’s still anger lingering in his eyes, but Zack goes quiet when he sees Cloud’s neutral expression. However, his eyes shine as though he’s found his answer.

“Cloud…”

Cloud softens his grip on Zack as he releases him. He steps in front of Sephiroth and looks straight into his green eyes. No fear, just a newfound resolution giving him confidence. He has people around him who care for him, who are there for him through thick and thin. His life means something, _he_ means something. Can’t believe it took him this long to realize it, but it doesn't matter how long it may have taken. He’s here now and that’s all that matters.

“Sephiroth,” the name rolls off Cloud’s tongue effortlessly, no stutter, no hesitation, “I have no interest in doing anything for you, especially when I receive no credit. I’m not a slave for you, nor do I plan on becoming one”

Sephiroth cocks an eyebrow, intrigued, “Oh? So you plan on just doing this? You’d give up a comfortable life for this?”

"I like my life as it is. I'm not the same person I was all those years ago. I'm different…I'm better now. In fact, I have plans for myself. I will not let you do as you please"

“Is that a challenge?”

“Not really, since I’ll be the one coming out on top” Cloud smirks.

“Don’t get too cocky now, you should know your place”

“Oh, I know my place. Now I’d appreciate it if you’d leave. You’re causing a disturbance and I need to get back to work”

Sephiroth sighs, “Fine, but I will be back tomorrow. I will not take no for an answer. I’ll drag you back if it comes to that”

“As if I’ll let you do that” Zack growls.

Sephiroth waves at the annoyance and makes his way out of the area, the sea of people moving out of his way, allowing him to pass without bumping into anyone.

When he’s gone, the crowd disperses, as there is no longer any drama to watch.

Zack grips Cloud’s shoulder and shakes him a bit, “Holy shit, Cloud! Where did that come from? That was awesome! You were like _super_ hot just now!”

"…Thanks," a faint smile creeps on Cloud, "Why are you here today? I wasn't exactly expecting you"

Zack pulls Cloud into an embrace and ruffles his hair, "I wanted to see you of course! I'll help out for a bit if you don't mind"

“You don’t have to help out if you don’t want to you know”

“Nah, it’s okay. I don’t want to just be sitting around anyway,” He pulls away, “So, there anything you need me to do? I can sweep around or something”

Cloud hums, “Sure, that’s fine, but…can I ask you something first?”

Zack tilts his head, “Yeah, what’s up?”

“What’d you do after I sent you the video?”

Zack grins at him, “You’ll see in the morning,” he tugs Cloud back into the shop, “Now come on, I’m sure you still have some work to do”

Zack paces around the shop looking for something to do. He starts straightening out some of the items hanging on the wall. 

“Man, you keep everything pretty tidy in here already” he laughs, “There isn’t much for me to do”

“I like to keep things clean” Cloud chuckles, “Unlike _someone_ ”

Zack leans back, unable to contain his laughter, “You got me there”. He wipes the tears from his eyes, “When do you close tonight?”

Cloud glances over to the clock, “In 2 hours. I don’t usually stay open that late since most customers come during the day.

"Cool, cool. You wanna grab dinner afterward then? It's been a while hasn't it?"

Cloud’s eyes light up and nods his head, “I’d like that…maybe I can pick a place this time” he peeks at Zack through his bangs.

“Sure Sunshine, whatever you want”

Cloud pouts, “I wonder how many nicknames you’re gonna give me…”

Zack chuckles, “I’ve got quite a few stored in my head”

"Great" he playfully rolls his eyes.

The two of them work together in the store for the next couple of hours. Zack trying to sneak in a touch nearly every second. Since Cloud was too conscious about someone walking in, he'd brush him off and keep to his work, causing Zack to pout each time.

Cloud locks up the shot as Zack waits for him outside.

“Alright, where to?” Zack asks excitedly.

“Do you like stews?” Cloud says, “There’s a hotpot place I like going to that’s not far from here”

“Sounds good, now lead the way Princess” Zack teases, gesturing for Cloud to walk in front of him.

Cloud frowns, "That has to be the worst one yet"

He chuckles, “Alright, I’ll scratch that one off the list”

Zack wraps his hand around Cloud’s, “This okay?”

Cloud blushes and nods his head. “Restaurant is this way” he points as he begins to guide Zack.

They weave their way between the people on the road. Zack occasionally pulls Cloud closer to him when it gets more congested.

Cloud notices a large crowd gathered around a large tv outside a bar. Normally he would’ve just ignored it, as it wasn’t usually anything important, however, what he heard had him flipping his head around.

_Breaking news: Jenova’s #1 hit was never really written by their lead singer Sephiroth._

There’s a clip from the video playing on the screen, his face is blurred out from it. But if anyone knew about him and Sephiroth in the past, it would be obvious that the person in the video was him.

He turns to Zack, “D—Did you do this?”

“I didn’t do it exactly, but I have a friend who’s a reporter. She knows how to make a huge headline” Zack leans over to get a better look at Cloud, “You okay?”

“…Yeah, I just wasn’t expecting this to happen so quickly. I’m just trying to wrap—”

He's cut off when a reporter is trying to interview Sephiroth.

“Did you really steal the song? From whom did oy steal it form? Are there other songs you stole?”

The reporter’s being persistent, pushing the microphone into Sephiroth’s space. However, he keeps his head down and turned away, his hair hiding any emotion that may be on his face.

It truly was a sight to see.

Cloud stares at the screen. There’s no way Sephiroth would be able to talk himself out of this situation. Zack had even submitted his song sheets to them, so they were showing pictures of those on the news. All that combined with the video; all the evidence is there.

He overhears the crowd watching, “I can’t believe this, that was one of my favorite songs. I wonder who really wrote it…”

Cloud's heart clenches. He's never thought about what would happen afterward. After Sephiroth's game was exposed to the public. Does he tell everyone he wrote it? Was that what he wanted? Honestly, he felt conflicted. It's wonderful that he can get back to writing freely without feeling like Sephiroth would show up at any time to steal his music. But at the same time, would the public like him? What would they even think of him? What if they didn't like him? Then what would he do?

“—oud—”

What if he wasn’t good enough?

“Cloud”

Zack is suddenly in Cloud’s space, his nose barely brushing against his own.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing really…”

“Cloud” he pinches the blonde’s nose, “You’re obviously thinking about something”. He looks at Cloud lovingly, “You can tell me you know?”

Cloud takes a deep breath, "Well…it's just that, what if when I go public with my music, what if…what if they don't like me? Or they don't like the stuff I make? What am I supposed to do then?"

“Cloud,” Zack cups his face, forcing him to look up into his blue-violet eyes, “You should write the things you want to write. So what if some people don’t like it? It won’t do you any good if you focus on songwriting just as a means to please others. Do what you wanna do. There _will_ be people who like what you make, and those people will be your _real_ fans”

Cloud blinks a few times, “…You sure?”

"Trust me, I've been down that road and it gets…tiring, to say the least. Now," Zack places a kiss on his cheek, "Chin up, you'll do great"

He smiles, “You’re right. I’m probably just overthinking anyway…” He averts his eyes back to the road and begins to make his way to the restaurant once again, pulling Zack along with him.

Once they arrive at the restaurant, they order a medium-sized bowl and split it between the two of them. Cloud looks over at Zack to him enjoying his food. Makes Cloud feel warm inside, seeing Zack enjoying himself.

After their meal, Zack walks Cloud back to his apartment. They stick close to each other the entire way there.

Once they reach Cloud’s unit, the blonde unlocks the door and steps inside, gazing back at Zack on last time before tuning in for the night.

“I’ll come by tomorrow around noon, that okay?”

Cloud nods, “I’ll be here”

A comfortable silence falls between them. Cloud reaches for Zack’s shirt, tugs him, pulling him into a kiss, “Thank you…”

Zack’s expression is soft, “Anytime. I want you to be happy” He kisses Cloud’s forehead, “Think I’ll head home now. Goodnight Cloudy”

He blushes, “…Love you…see you tomorrow” he mumbles it so quietly, Zack nearly misses it.

He chuckles, “Love you too”

With that, Cloud closes the door and retires into his apartment. He places his shoes on the rack and slumps down onto the couch in the living room. He picks up the small notebook resting on the coffee table and skims through it. He had a draft for a song sketched in it. It’s something he’s been working on the past few months. Something he’s been writing for Zack. He wants to perform it for him someday, but it has to be perfect; there's so much he wants to convey to him.

Cloud’s taken out of his thoughts when there’s a knock on the door.

“Zack? Did he forget something?” Cloud asks himself.

He gets up from the couch and makes his way to the door. He unlocks it and opens it, “Zack? Did you—”

His eyes widen when he finds a hand suddenly reaching for him, pushing him back violently inside his apartment, slamming him against the wall. His breath gets stuck in his throat.

“Of all the things I expected you to do, this wasn’t one of them Cloud. You think I’ll just let this all go?” The man scoffs, “Oh no. If I’m going to lose my career, you might as well to”

Zack walks down the quiet road, making his way to the train station. There were still a few people on the road, most of them also making their way home, wherever that was for them.

“Oh,” Zack remembers something he forgot to tell Cloud. He wanted to take Cloud to this new music bar tomorrow. Supposedly was very laid back and was only opened during the day rather than during the night.

He pulls out his phone to call Cloud. He dials the number and places the phone against his ear.

_The number you have dialed—_

Zack frowns. He didn’t leave that long ago…but maybe Cloud was just in the shower. He’ll try calling him again when he gets home.

Suddenly there’s an emergency vehicle flying by him, moving in the opposite direction he’s going. Zack turns around to see where the car was going. It makes a hard left up the hill…that’s towards Cloud’s apartment…

Zack’s heart sinks. Did something happen? Maybe it wasn’t going to Cloud’s place, but somewhere that was in the same direction. However, he couldn’t shake his gut feeling off him.

It wouldn’t hurt just to make sure…

Zack quickly turns around and runs back to Cloud's place. Hopefully, he's just overthinking things and nothing was wrong…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First let me tell you all, nothing bad happens! If anyone is wondering. Cloud will be just fine. So the next chapter will be the last chapter for this story. Ch13 will be more of something fun that's tied to all this <_<
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed! Honestly, this one was a but hard to write as I'm not the best at concluding stories lmao But anyway see you all next week hopefully :) As always, thank you all for the support.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry for the wait! Classes have been hectic, but I've finally finished!   
> Note: There is a link to a song somewhere in the story. It's not necessary to listen to it, but is the song I had in mind during that part

Cloud tugs at the man’s wrist, trying to force his hand away from him. Once he realizes that’s not working, Cloud swings his foot, kicking the man away from him.

Sephiroth stumbles backward, placing his hand to his gut. "I see you've learned how to bite. Did that Zackary teach you that?" he smirks.

“Why are you here?” Cloud demands an answer. Sephiroth has no business being here. If anything, he should be somewhere hiding from the reporters. Doesn’t he understand what sort of situation he’s in?

“I’m sure you’ve already seen the reports” Sephiroth doesn’t bother fixing his disheveled hair, “You started this with me, I see no reason why it cannot end with you as well”

"Are you crazy," Cloud shouts, "This was all you! Did you really think you can just act as you'd never get caught? Just get over it, you messed up. It’s time you suffered the consequences”

Sephiroth sighs as though he’s tired of Cloud not understanding; as though Cloud had _something_ to understand. He approaches Cloud sinisterly.

Cloud backs up, keeping himself faced towards Sephiroth. He didn’t dare turn his back because he wasn’t sure what the man would do.

Soon enough, the silver-haired man lunges forward, gripping Cloud by the throat.

Cloud tries to push him off but has little luck doing so. Instead, he bites onto Sephiroth’s arm, pulling blood out of him.

Sephiroth pulls back, looking at the blood dripping from his arm.

Cloud moves into a defensive position, “Get out. Right. Now” He grabs his phone out his back pocket and calls for help, “Hello—”

“I’m not going anywhere Cloud” Sephiroth rips Cloud’s phone from his hands and throws it against the wall, smashing the screen.

Cloud cowers back throwing anything and everything at Sephiroth, without caring if anything broke. However, he just kept approaching him, closing the distance between them. Eventually, Cloud was close enough that Sephiroth could grab him.

He grips Cloud from his hair on the back of his head and smashing him against the wall. Cloud feels something drip from his nose. Probably blood, judging by the red smear on the wall.

He doesn’t know how long everything lasted. Just felt the aches in his body, his head throbbing, and his vision spinning. Cloud does his best to stand his ground. He reels back his arm and with all of his force, he throws a powerful blow to Sephiroth’s face, causing the man to stagger back. This only infuriated him further, and Sephiroth once again grabs hold of him. However, Sephiroth was eventually ripped away from him.

Cloud crashes to the ground, unable to hold himself up. He places his hand on his head, trying to calm his pulsing headache.

He tries to see what’s going around him. There seems to be a lot of people around. He can see the shadows of others moving in his apartment, who seem to be pinning Sephiroth to the ground, cuffing him. He can see him struggling, his silver hair splayed across the floor.

Cloud feels strong hands lift him from the floor carefully. An arm wrapping around his waist, hoisting him up.

“Cloud—oh my god…are you okay?”

Sounds like…

“Zack?” Cloud asks, his voice hoarse. He’s still dizzy.

“Yes, can you see me alright?” He gently tilts Cloud’s head towards him, catching his eyes.

Cloud squints, “You’re a little blurry”

“How’s your head feel?”

“Hurts a little”

Zack frowns, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect him to go this far, I should’ve stayed with you tonight”

Cloud lets out a tired chuckle, “S’fine. You’re here now… and—and I bit his arm pretty good…and that punch…he’s definitely gonna feel that later”

Zack huffs trying to conceal the faint smirk. Cloud really did do some damage to that asshole, “I noticed. Come on, let’s get you looked at. Make sure you don’t have a concussion”

He lifts Cloud into his arms and brings him out of the chaotic apartment. Cloud can hear Sephiroth calling out his name. So much anger…why? He didn’t do anything. All this was from Sephiroth’s own decisions, not his. He closes his eyes and nuzzles against Zack’s chest, breathing in his scent.

***

"Zack, I'm fine. The doctor said I'm just gonna have some bruising, nothing major” Cloud sighs.

“I know I know, but you know, seeing you on the ground all beaten up really scared me”

Cloud huffs and pulls Zack into a kiss, "I'm. Fine. Now would you stop freaking out? My head is still throbbing. You mind if we go over to your place?"

“Y—Yeah, of course. It’s kinda messy though…”

“That’s fine. I don’t mind”

***

After Cloud had been taken to the hospital, the situation was all over the news. Sephiroth was arrested for assault and the public eventually pieced together that Cloud was the other man in the video, the original creator of the song. Some reporters constantly tried to interview him. However, he declined every time. He just wanted some quiet for a bit now that everything was over.

Cloud’s phone starts ringing. He glances at it noticing it’s from a number he doesn’t recognize. He would typically ignore it, but he found himself picking it up.

“Hello?”

“Yes, hello? Is this Cloud Strife?”

The voice sounded vaguely familiar, “Yes?”

“I don’t know if you remember, but this is Lazard of Midgar Performing Arts”

Cloud’s eyes widen. He’s at a loss of words. Why was Lazard calling him suddenly? That school is behind him…his past is behind him now.

“You’re probably wondering why I am calling after many years. Well…due to recent events, I wanted to formally apologize for my accusations in the past. It may be years late, but I am truly sorry. I never believed you in the past and that was deeply irresponsible of me. I should’ve gathered more evidence before coming to conclusions”

Cloud takes a deep breath, “It’s alright…I’ve moved on from it”

“If you would like to come back, I will personally enroll you, your tuition would fully covered”

“You mean…you’re asking me if I want to go back?”

“Of course, it’s the least I can do after everything…”

Cloud thinks it over. He was upset when he was kicked out, and a part of him did miss attending the school, but…things are different now. He’s honestly content about how things are now and quite frankly doesn’t see the need to finish school.

“I appreciate it, but I think I’m going to have to decline. I’m perfectly happy with how my life is now”

Cloud can hear Lazard’s smile through the phone, “That’s quite alright. I’m glad you’re doing well. But if you ever change your mind, the offer stands”

“Thank you”

Cloud hangs up the phone and sighs, reminiscing on the time where going to Midgar Performing Arts meant everything to him.

“Who was that?” Zack comes out from the bathroom, drying his hair, with a towel wrapped around his waist.

“Just an old acquaintance” He’s happy here, with Zack.

Zack hums and takes a seat next to him, some of the water from Zack’s hair drips onto him.

"Could you dry your hair completely first, you're dripping all over the place." Cloud grabs the towel from him and begins to dry Zack's hair himself, his face getting intimately close to Zack's"

Zack chuckles, “Sorry, I never have the patience to dry my hair completely every time”

A silence falls between them. Cloud playfully wraps the towel around Zack’s face and leans into his bare chest.

“You smell like soap” Cloud mumbles.

“Is that a good thing?”

“Mhm…”

Zack leans down and places a kiss on top of Cloud’s head, his blonde hair tickling his lips.

“Hey…” Zack starts hesitantly.

Cloud looks at him, concealing a smile because Zack still has the towel wrapped around his head.

“Do you think you’d wanna…I don’t know…move in together?”

“Y—You want me to move in…with you?” Cloud stutters.

Zack hums, “I mean, I’m practically seeing you every day now. And besides, after everything that’s happened and just all the time we’ve spent together, I want to, I don’t want to be apart from you”

Cloud blushes, “I—I would like that…”

“Really?”

“Mhmm” he leans into Zack, nuzzling his head into Zack’s neck, “I like being with you, and…I also don’t want to be apart from you”

Zack wraps his arms around Cloud, squeezing him. He’s just so cute, how’d he get so lucky…

* * *

_1 year later_

Cloud’s running down the stairs, doing his best not to be late. He had to run some errands that he got caught up with before seeing Tifa.

A lot has happened over the past year. Cloud moved in with Zack, somehow Aerith and Tifa started dating, and now…now Cloud was writing music.

Cloud had met up with Zack’s reporter friend Yuffie. During the interview with her, he told her that he was going to start writing music, not for anyone else, but for him. For the time being that is. Maybe he’d look into songwriting for others at some point, but not now. He wanted to focus on what he had already and the people around him.

Today is his official “debut” as a singer/songwriter. He’s supposed to be performing a song tonight at Tifa’s bar, hence the reason why he is meeting up with her now.

He finds her sitting at a table within a coffee shop, sipping at her latte. Her luscious black hair is braided very loosely, most likely Aerith’s work.

“Tifa, sorry I’m late. I had a few things that took a little longer than I thought they would” He explains, taking the seat across from her.

“That’s alright, gave me some time to think about everything,” She pauses, gazing down at her drink before meeting Cloud’s eyes with a warm smile, “I can’t believe this is happening. Words cannot explain how happy I am for you. To see you doing what you love freely, and just seeing how happy you are with Zack…I couldn’t be happier”

“You don’t have to act like my mother you know,” he teases.

“I know, I know.” She smiles.

“But you do know you’ve been a huge part of it all as well. You’ve been with me every step of the way”

“Yes, but you know as well as I do that it was because of Zack that you are here now doing this”

She had a point, Zack gave him confidence, reminded him how much he loved music, how much he wanted to write again. If it wasn’t for Zack, he’d probably still be an empty shell just trudging through life.

“…Yeah, that’s why I wanna make tonight special.” He twiddles his fingers as a blush rises to his face.

She chuckles, “You do know there are going to be reporters there”

He nods, "Yes, that's okay with me. Besides, maybe some will back off after finding out." Since he had written such a well-known song, reporters were constantly trying to interview him about it. It was all draining, but hopefully, it would die down over time.

“Alright,” She claps her hands, “You get the outfit I told you to pick up?”

“I did…you always pick something that’s kind of…revealing”

“Revealing? Not at all, just a little skin. We both know Zack likes it”

Cloud huffs. Zack indeed loved it so much, always wanting to take his pictures, always trying to leave marks…

“You’ll come by the bar later today. Aerith is gonna help with the makeup as I work on the decorations. He’s gonna love it” He can see the excitement in her eyes. “I also can’t wait to hear the song. You'd never let me look at it" she crosses her arms.

“It’s just really…personal,” He took a year to the write the song, wanting every aspect of it to convey his feelings. He wanted to see that bright smile on Zack’s face. “You’ll hear it tonight, so just be patient”

“Yeah, yeah. _Everyone_ is gonna hear it tonight.”

“Oh, that reminds me, how’s Zack getting there?”

“Ah, I have my friend Jessie getting him. She the vocalist of Avalanche remember?”

Cloud nods.

“I told her to just drag him along. Tell him there’s this really cool band playing. Zack’s always down to listen to new bands. Oh, and I also told her to make sure he sits at the table near the front.” She smirks.

“Alright, sounds good,” Cloud slid up from his chair, “Guess I’ll see you tonight…”

***

Cloud was nervous the whole way to the bar. Even speeding through the highway did nothing to calm his nerves.

He pulls up behind the bar, making sure his bike was out of eye’s view. He steps off and enters through the back door. Aerith is the first to greet him.

“Cloud! You’re here” she beams, “Hurry up and get dressed. I can’t wait to do your makeup” She bounces in anticipation.

He walks into the back room, locking the door behind him. He hangs the clothes Tifa picked out for him on the rack and begins to remove the clothes he’s currently wearing.

He slides on the suit Tifa picked for him and slides the rings onto his fingers. He looks at his reflection in the mirror.

It’s a black satin suit, that hugged the shape of his body. The jacket featured a deep ‘U’ cut that showed off some of his chest. A chain hung from the collar. The pants accentuated his slim legs, and the 2-inch heel on his boots shaped his legs further. He wore silver rings on his right hand and silver chained earrings that attached from his lobe to the helix.

He comes out of the room, Tifa and Aerith both waiting for him outside the door.

“Oh my god! You look so good! Zack’s gonna drool all over you. Just wait till your makeup is done. You’ll be irresistible” Aerith gives him a thumbs up.

“The suit looks great on you” Tifa adds, nodding her head, proud of her choice.

Aerith brings him to a stool and sets him down, setting up her mirror and pulling out various brushes and shades of eyeshadow from her bag.

"Close your eyes," she tells him, "Spreading primer over his bare face and eyelids.

She gently pats foundation into his skin, his face becoming even more flawless than it already was. She grabs her eyeshadow brush and reaches for a cream shade to brush over his brow bone, to add some highlight. She then spreads plum-colored shadow on his eyelids, then proceeds to apply a little golden shimmer on the edges. She puts away the eyeshadow and reaches for the mascara and brushes it along his eyelashes, elongating them. She then grabs the lip color. She opts for a light shade of pink and paints it onto his lips. She takes a step back, observing her work.

“Alright, all done. You can open your eyes now”

Cloud flutters his eyes open, blinking a few times, adjusting to the longer lashes. He looks at Aerith then over at Tifa.

“Well?” he asks, unsure if he actually looks good.

“Cloud, you look so pretty” Aerith gleams.

Tifa nods in agreement, “Zack’s gonna lose his mind”

Aerith spins him towards the mirror, allowing him to look over Aerith’s work. He moves his head around looking at himself from different angles.

He looked…pretty, and kind of…erotic. The plum eyeshadow contrasted with his blonde hair. His blue eyes more prominent from the golden shadow brushed on the inner corner of his eyes. His skin looked flawless, his lips looked soft and plump.

He turns to Aerith in disbelief, “This is me?”

“Yes,” She giggles, “You’re already pretty, I just brought out your features”

He glances over at the clock, it’s nearly time for the show. He takes a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

Tifa notices his nervousness and places a hand on his shoulder, “You’ll do great. We’ll be cheering you on.” She smiles ever so gently towards him.

***

“Who’s this new band you’re talking about?” Zack asks, following Jessie into the bar.

“You’ll see. I’m sure you’ll _love_ them. Tifa said they’re really good” She explains as she guides him through the dense crowd of people.

Zack hums. Tifa didn’t allow many people to perform at her bar, so given that she reached out to this band, they were probably really good.

They reach a table near the front of the stage. Zack glances around. There’s a lot of people here. He’s never seen it so packed. It’s even more packed than the time he came to perform with the band. There are even reporters here. So, whoever was playing, they had _many_ people anticipating the performance. If only Cloud could be here to see it. He tried getting him to come, but apparently, he had to go across town for some supplies for the shop. Zack wasn’t going to go since Cloud couldn’t make it, but Cloud told him to go. Told him to record the performance so he could show him later at home.

The various conversations from the crowd buzz in Zack’s head. So many conversations happening at once, he can’t tell what anyone is talking about.

“I’m gonna go get some drinks,” Jessie mentions.

Zack nods as she leaves, disappearing into the crowd.

Suddenly the lights dim, the spotlight shines onto the stage. Tifa’s standing in the light, mic in hand.

“Wow, a lot of people showed up tonight. Now tonight is a special performance, as most of you probably already know. It’s his first time performing to the public, so I hope you’d all give him lots of love. He’s a little shy so I’ll introduce the song he’s singing tonight. Now the song he’s singing is very special. He's been working on it for nearly a year and is dedicated to a special someone." She smirks. She looks glances behind herself then moves her attention back to the crowd, “Looks like he’s ready. Please enjoy the show everyone”

She exits the stage, and the lights dim once again. The shadow of a person can be seen walking on the stage, positioning himself in front of the mic. There’s a guitar player who sits on the stool behind him. Looks like it’s going to be an acoustic performance. Always a nice change of pace, Zack thinks.

The lights brighten a bit as the [music](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6X8smR_pSXI) starts, but it’s still difficult to see the vocalists face.

The lights don’t showcase the vocalist until he starts singing. It’s at that moment where Zack’s heart stops. He stares in awe at the man singing on stage, his mouth hanging open, taking in every single feature. His slim legs, the little peek of his chest, the earring that hung off his ears, his flawless skin, his pink lips, his beautiful blue eyes, the spikey blonde hair Zack has loved since he first saw it.

“…Cloud?” Zack says to himself.

Cloud sways his hips on stage, immersing himself into the song as he gazes at Zack and only Zack. There’s so much passion written on his face, his blue eyes reflecting with love.

Zack at first is so taken aback by the sight of Cloud and the way he’s just singing to him that he doesn’t notice the lyrics for a second. When he does catch them, tears well up in the corner of his eyes.

_Another song for you about your love_

_‘Cause you love me that’s full of faults_

_I wish you could see it from this view_

_‘Cause everything around you is a little brighter from your love_

Not only did Cloud dedicate this performance to him, but he also wrote this song specifically with him in mind.

As he sings, Cloud begins to walk off the front of the stage, the spotlight following his every movement. He approaches Zack, never breaking away from his gaze. Cloud stands in front of Zack, singing with the widest smile he hasn’t seen since their first date. Cloud takes hold of Zack’s hand, bringing it up to his face, closing his eyes, basking in the warmth of Zack’s hand on his porcelain skin.

Zack swings his other hand around Cloud’s waist pulling him in closer. He didn’t care that everyone’s eyes were on them, and neither did Cloud. Cloud had made a decision, and Zack couldn’t be any happier that his decision involved telling everyone about them.

Cloud pushes their foreheads together as he reaches the end of the song. Zack just closes his eyes and absorbs every single lyric, his heart swelling from all the love Cloud is giving him.

The song reaches the end and Cloud presses forward, kissing Zack. Zack gently grabs the back of Cloud’s head, running his fingers through the blonde hair.

He pulls away and whispers something only Cloud can here, “God I love you so much”.

Cloud blushes and pulls away, averting his attention to the crowd who’s watching every intimate moment happening between him and Zack right now.

Cloud brings the mic back to his mouth, “I hope you all enjoyed the performance. If you haven’t noticed, this is a song that I wrote specifically for my boyfriend Zack. Some of you may know him already as he is the vocalist for Crisis Core… Anyway, I just want to thank you all for coming to see me…and listen to me perform…” he blushes. It’s so nerve-wracking talking in front of so many people.

There were some 'awes' from the crowd. Suddenly everyone applauds him. He can hear some encouragement coming from the crowd.

After things die down a bit, some of the reporters approach Cloud, asking to interview both him and Zack. The two of them agree to it and they answer all the questions, most of it being about how they met and how long they’ve been dating.

Zack and Cloud arrive home after the long night. Cloud sighs and slumps on the couch, beginning to remove his stage clothes. However, Zack stops him.

“Hold on, don’t take them off yet”

Cloud glances at him confused, “Why? We’re home already and I want to get comfortable”

Zack hums and climbs over him, “Well, let me do it.” He leans down placing a kiss on the part of Cloud’s chest that’s exposed. He sucks against it enough to leave a faint mark.

“Z—Zack…” Cloud gazes at him as he wraps his arms around Zack.

Zack lifts Cloud’s leg and positions him higher on the couch. He peels of Cloud’s blazer as he kisses along his jawline.

“Can’t believe you did all this for me…” he pulls back, taking in the sight of Cloud, his torso completely exposed, “And you look so good right now. Seriously, the makeup…the outfit. Can’t believe my boyfriend is this attractive”

Cloud blushes, “I’m glad you like it…”

Zack chuckles, “I’d love whatever you’d do for me”

He continues to place kisses along Cloud’s body, moving lower until he reaches the hem of his satin pants, “You mind if I take these off?” he asks, slipping his finger in between the bands.

Cloud nods as he watches Zack.

Zack wastes no time in removing them, placing kisses along his inner thigh.

Cloud shivers at the gentle touch, his cock begins to swell underneath his boxers, “Zack…you too…” he tugs at Zack’s shirt.

“Alright, alright” Zack leans back and quickly removes his shirt tossing it to the side.

Zack’s about to go back to kissing Cloud’s thighs but stops when he feels Cloud’s hands on his shoulder. He looks up, “What’s wrong?”

Even though the foundation, Zack can see the blush rising on Cloud's cheeks, "You don't have to all the work…"

Zack tilts his head, “What do you mean?”

Cloud pushes him back, “S—Stay there…just watch for now…” he timidly spoke.

Zack's eyes widen at the sight before him. Was Cloud really about to masturbate in front of him? Zack gazes in anticipation.

Cloud does his best to keep his eyes on Zack’s as he reaches for the bottle of lube on the table next to the couch. He pops the bottle open and pours some into his hand and moves his hand down to his cock, slowly stroking it. He bites his bottom lip as he applies more pressure, pumping a bit faster.

A shallow gasp escapes him. He feels more aroused knowing Zack’s watching him so closely. His eyes flutter as his face grows pink. Lust shimmers in his blue eyes as he gazes at Zack.

Zack’s breath hitches as his face grows hot. He swallows the lump in his throat, finding himself growing hard as he watches Cloud stretch his entrance, translucent fluid beginning to drip out the tip.

Zack inches forward as Cloud starts to whimper. He brushes against Cloud’s inner thigh, “Can I?” He asks, his voice hoarse. He couldn’t sit and watch any longer.

“I—I’m almost ready…” Cloud stutters out.

Zack looks at him knowingly, “You know, you don’t have to do everything. I like helping you out…I like feeling you come undone by my own hands”.

Cloud blushes, “I…I just want…I just wanted to try this…”

Zack’s eyes widen, “Really?” He leans in closer and places a kiss on Cloud’s cheek, “Is there anything else you wanna try?”

“N—Not right now, but…I don’t think I can keep this up any longer” He gazes at Zack eagerly, biting his lower lip.

Zack chuckles, “Alright, alright” He lays Cloud back lower and hover over him, “Just sit back and relax”. He replaces Cloud’s fingers with his own, probing Cloud on the inside. Zack pushes his fingers deeper, brushing against Cloud’s prostate.

"Mm," Cloud moans out. He wraps his arm around Zack's neck and kisses his neck, moving down to place light nibbles on the dip of his shoulder.

Zack pushes Cloud further down onto the couch. He removes his fingers from Cloud and grabs him by his legs, pulling him closer to him. Zack removes his swollen member and positions it against Cloud’s tight entrance.

Zack only pushes the tip in, teasing Cloud.

A faint whimper is heard from Cloud.

Zack smirks, “Tell me, what do you want?”

Cloud moves himself, trying to get Zack deeper in him, “You know what I want. Just give it to me…”

Zack eyes him, “Do I? I won’t know for sure if you don’t tell me”

Cloud lets out a quiet “tch” before grabbing the back of Zack’s head and pulls him in for a hard kiss, “J—Just fuck me already”

Fulfilling Cloud’s wishes, Zack thrusts the rest of his length into Cloud, causing the blonde to throw his head back, his eyes widening from the sudden stretch.

Zack continues to relentlessly thrust into Cloud, barely giving him time to breathe. Cloud's make up begins to smudge as his moans grow louder with every thrust.

“Z—Zack! Yes, just like that” he moans as his legs begin to shake.

His mind is filled with Zack, and only Zack; he wouldn’t ask for it any other way.

Zack leans down to place a wet kiss on Cloud’s stained lips, their tongues curing into each other’s as though they were starved.

Zack pulls away and nibbles at Cloud’s neck as his rhythm becomes more erratic. He’s getting close.

Cloud knows this. He wraps his legs tighter around Zack, pulling him in.

Zack thrusts into him a few more times before he buries himself as deep into Cloud as he can and releases, filling Cloud.

Cloud comes at the same time, his body trembling as his orgasm peaks.

After finishing, Zack falls on top of him, wrapping his arms around him and flipping them over so that Cloud is resting on top of him.

Zack gazes at Cloud and kisses the tip of his nose, “You wanna washup now?” he asks.

Cloud hums, “Yes please, I bet my face is a mess right now”

Zack chuckles, “It isn’t that bad”

“But it’s still bad”

“You said it, not me” Zack teases.

The two of them wash up together. Cloud walks out of the bathroom, still in the process of drying his hair. Zack’s already sitting on the bed.

Cloud sits next to him, laying his head on Zack's lap and closes his eyes. Everything that happened a year ago quickly flashes through his mind. The good memories and even the bad ones. Despite it all, it’s always been Zack. He’s always been there for him, always supporting him, always showering him with affection, always assuring him that everything would be alright.

A genuine smile lifts on his face as he opens his eyes to meet Zack’s, “I love you” he says quietly, but just loud enough that Zack could hear.

Zack grins and kisses his forehead, “I love you too Cloudy”

Cloud lifts his head from Zack’s lap and scoots himself closer into his boyfriend’s space. He nuzzles his head into Zack’s neck, “Zack?”

“Hm?” Zack loves it when Cloud nuzzles into him like this.

“Do you think we can write a song… _together_? I’ve been thinking about it for a while and I really want to write one with you…” he blushes.

Zack beams, “Of course! I’d love that!” Unable to hide his excitement, he asks, “What should we write about?”

Cloud chuckles, “I don’t know, but as long as I write it with you, I’m sure it’ll be wonderful”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uuuuuu it's finally done! I hope the ending was alright? This is actually the first story I've ever finished ;-; I did take the chapters down to 12. I may or may not do the extra special side chapter, so it'll just remain completed. I just wanna thank you all fr reading the story and supporting me. I really appreciate it and you guys have been so kind ;-;   
> After classes die down a bit, I'm hoping to work on an ASMR/College AU fic next uwu   
> Until next time! :) <3

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! This is my first ff7 fic and I'm honestly kinda nervousss about it ;-; This musician au was brought about by a fan art that I had made ( https://twitter.com/thea_who/status/1285797573576417280 ) 
> 
> But all in all I hope you guys enjoy it! I know it starts of a little slow, but I swear it picks up. This first chapter I just wanted to focus on Cloud's and Zack's initial thoughts on each other as well as just Cloud in general, since I haven't introduced him as a songwriter just yet. There will be a reveal for that huhu But next chapter will have lots of Zack x Cloud interactions I promiseeee. Also I plan on updating this every Tuesday/Monday (those are my days off so its bound to go up one of those days). Hopefully I can keep up when classes start next month, but I'll do my best to keep up since this story is more or less all drafted out :)
> 
> But as always I appreciate any tips or just general comments :) Thank you~~~


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